S. 1810 would amend the Public Health Service Act to increase the provision of scientifically sound information and support services to patients receiving a positive test diagnosis for Down syndrome or other prenatally and postnatally diagnosed conditions.
Detailed Summary
Prenatally and Postnatally Diagnosed Conditions Awareness Act - (Sec. 3) Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through either the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), or the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), to authorize and oversee certain activities relating to Down syndrome or other prenatally or postnatally diagnosed conditions. Includes among such activities the awarding of grants, contracts or cooperative agreements to eligible entities to: (1) collect, synthesize, and disseminate current evidence-based information relating to such conditions; and (2) coordinate the provision of, and access to, new or existing supportive services for patients receiving a positive diagnosis for such conditions. Includes within such supportive services: (1) the establishment of a resource telephone hotline; (2) the expansion of the National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities; (3) the expansion of national and local peer-support programs; (4) the establishment of a national registry, or network of local registries, of families willing to adopt newborns with such conditions; and (5) the establishment of awareness and education programs for health care providers who provide, interpret, or inform parents of the results of prenatal tests for such conditions.
Requires the Secretary to place an emphasis on funding partnerships between health care professional groups and disability advocacy organizations in distributing funds.
Requires a grantee under this Act to make available to health care providers of parents who receive a prenatal or postnatal diagnosis: (1) up-to-date, evidence-based, written information concerning the range of outcomes for individuals living with the diagnosed condition, including physical, developmental, educational, and psychosocial outcomes; and (2) contact information regarding support services, including information hotlines, resource centers or clearinghouses, national and local peer support groups, and other educational and support programs. Requires information provided to be culturally and linguistically appropriate and to be approved by the Secretary.
Requires the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to report to Congress concerning the effectiveness of current health care and family support programs serving as resources for the families of children with disabilities.
Authorizes appropriations for FY2008-FY2012.
Status of the Legislation
Latest Major Action: 4/21/2008: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 701.
Points in Favor
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Points Against
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Visitor Comments
Dave and Sabrina
The testing and support networks are a key in living through this experience. We were blessed with a baby that had Trisomy 18 and got to enjoy her for three months. The second part of our blessing happen because of the military and the support we got from a developmental pediatric at an Army hospital in Washington State. On the down side when our daughter was born off the base the doctor that delivered her treated her like a peace of meat with no compassion during a very stressful situation. This law is a very good thing