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Senate committee advances bill broadening newborn‑screening exemptions
Summary
The Idaho Senate Health and Welfare Committee voted to send Senate Bill 11 79 to the floor with a do‑pass recommendation after testimony about the public‑health benefits of newborn screening and debate over a physician medical‑exemption clause.
BOISE — The Idaho Senate Health and Welfare Committee on Tuesday voted to send Senate Bill 11 79 to the Senate floor with a “do pass” recommendation, advancing legislation that would move currently administered newborn‑screening rules into state code and broaden the grounds on which parents can opt their newborns out of screening and related interventions.
Sen. Camille Blaylock, a Republican from District 11, introduced the bill as a trailer to Senate Bill 10 14, which previously moved newborn‑screening rules into Idaho law. “These rules govern the tests conducted on infants born in Idaho,” Blaylock said. She told the committee the bill does not add new screening requirements but aligns statutory language with existing practice and expands the exemption language to match the state’s vaccination exemptions.
The issue drew a mix of public‑health testimony and rights‑of‑parents arguments. Jen…
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