SPONSOR:	Rep. Hudson & Sen. Hall-Long;
	Reps. Briggs King, Gray, Miro, Ramone, Barbieri, Carson, Jaques, Mitchell, Viola, Walker; Sens. Ennis, Lopez

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

147th GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO.

A RESOLUTION RECOGNIZING THE ADOPTION AND IMPLEMENTATION BY ALL DELAWARE HOSPITALS OF PULSE OXIMETRY FOR NEWBORN SCREENING.

WHEREAS, in the United States, about 4,800 (or 11.6 per 10,000) babies born each year have one of seven critical congenital heart defects (CCHDs); and

WHEREAS, CCHDs (which also are known collectively in some instances as critical congenital heart disease) are structural heart defects that often are associated with hypoxia among infants during the newborn period; and

WHEREAS, infants with CCHDs are at risk for significant morbidity or mortality early in life because of closing of the ductus arteriosus or other physiologic changes; and

WHEREAS, all CCHD defects require some type of intervention―often involving a surgical procedure―soon after birth; and

WHEREAS, newborn screening for critical congenital heart disease should be conducted between 24 to 48 hours of age, using motion-tolerant pulse oximeters cleared by the US Food and Drug Administration; and

WHEREAS, newborn screening using pulse oximetry can identify some infants with critical congenital heart defects; and

WHEREAS, without screening, some newborns with CCHDs might be missed because the signs of critical congenital heart disease might not be evident before an infant is discharged from the hospital after birth; and

WHEREAS, the American Academy of Pediatrics Recommends Pulse Oximetry Screening for all newborns; and

WHEREAS, in September 2010, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary's Advisory Committee on Heritable Disorders in Newborns and Children (SACHDNC) voted to add CCHD screening to the SACHDNC Recommended Uniform Screening Panel; and

WHEREAS, in September 2011, HHS Secretary Sebelius approved adding CCHD to the Recommended Uniform Screening Panel and outlined specific tasks assigned to NIH, CDC, and HRSA; and

WHEREAS, screening has been estimated to cost $5.00 to $10.00 per infant; and

WHEREAS, the time required for each screen is about 1 to 5 minutes; and

WHEREAS, every Delaware Hospital with an Obstetrics or Maternity Ward has adopted the practice of performing pulse oximetry screening for all newborns as a best practice;

NOW, THEREFORE:

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the 147^th General Assembly of the State of Delaware, the Senate concurring therein, that we recognizes and applaud the adoption by Delaware’s Hospitals of the pulse oximetry testing standard for newborn screening as a testament to their commitment to child and maternal health.