The Michigan House Rules Committee on Wednesday heard testimony on House Bill 4402, which would add testing for congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV) to the state’s newborn screening panel. Representative VanderWaal introduced the bill and testified alongside Dr. Casey Stack of the Michigan Audiology Coalition and Dr. Megan Pesch of the University of Michigan and the National CMV Foundation.

The measure would add CMV to the list of conditions screened for at birth and require the department that runs newborn screening to create informational materials for clinicians and parents. Supporters told the committee that CMV affects about ‘‘1 out of every 150 babies,’’ that roughly ‘‘one fifth’’ of infected infants develop lifelong health problems, and that most infants with congenital CMV appear healthy at birth unless specifically tested.

Representative VanderWaal said the test can be run on the same specimen used for other newborn screens and described early detection as critical. ‘‘Simply put, we can save lives by testing our kids for this dangerous virus,’’ Representative VanderWaal said during opening remarks.

Dr. Casey Stack, legislative chair of the Michigan Audiology Coalition and a clinical audiologist, told the committee CMV ‘‘is the most common cause of non hereditary hearing loss in children.’’ Stack said universal screening within the first 21 days of life would allow earlier monitoring and intervention for infants at risk of progressive hearing loss.

Dr. Megan Pesch, a developmental and behavioral pediatrician who said she runs a congenital CMV developmental follow-up clinic at the University of Michigan, described clinical experience with delayed diagnoses. ‘‘I started that clinic 7 years ago after my own daughter was born with congenital CMV,’’ Pesch said. She told the committee physicians receive little training about congenital CMV and that early antiviral therapy is most effective when begun before about one month of age.

Committee members discussed possible fiscal and procedural implications. Vice Chair Whitworth said the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) had recommended that CMV be evaluated by the newborn screening quality assurance advisory committee rather than placed directly into statute, noting that DHHS had raised potential fiscal impacts. Dr. Pesch and Dr. Stack said they had requested advisory-committee review previously and that the committee had not yet acted on that request.

Members also pressed clinical questions about outcomes. When Representative Liberati asked whether hearing can return after treatment, Dr. Pesch said some infants improve but that ‘‘in most infants’’ the hearing loss cannot be fully reversed; early treatment can slow progression or stabilize hearing in some cases. Committee members emphasized that many infants with congenital CMV pass standard newborn hearing screens and later develop symptoms, which supporters said is a reason for targeted newborn CMV testing.

No committee vote on House Bill 4402 was recorded at the hearing. Charlie Burton of the Department of Health and Human Services was recorded as ‘‘not wishing to speak in opposition to the bill as written.’’ The committee adjourned without taking further action on the bill at that meeting.

The bill remains before the House Rules Committee for further consideration and possible referral for fiscal or advisory review.