State and National Newborn Screening Emergency Preparedness

Screening newborns for certain treatable genetic or congenital conditions during the first 24 to 48 hours of birth is a public health responsibility. Effective laboratory testing of newborns using dried blood spot specimens collected at birth, combined with effective follow-up and treatment, helps prevent mental retardation, severe disabilities and death in newborns. The continuity of newborn screening services is critical for public health and a comprehensive plan is necessary during times of natural disaster, power outages, and other emergency situations to ensure there are no interruptions in delivery of services. Most public health jurisdictions have a continuity of operations plan (COOP), a comprehensive pre-event plan that describes procedures, policies, and arrangements necessary for the laboratory to respond quickly and effectively to a variety of possible disruptions in services. Additionally, since the enactment of the Newborn Screening Saves Lives Act of 2008, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) have developed a national newborn contingency plan (CONPLAN).

This presentation will describe emergency preparedness legislation as well as evaluate readiness and response of state newborn screening programs to deal with an emergency or natural disaster. It will highlight regional collaborative and table top activities that the states have performed as a means of identifying potential issues with laboratory testing, procurement of materials, communications, and follow-up for newborn screening programs. Upon leaving the presentation, the audience should demonstrate an increased awareness of newborn screening contingency planning efforts both at the national and state level.