FL S0124

Requires the Department of Health to adopt rules mandating that ambulatory surgical centers, hospitals, and birth centers perform screening for critical congenital heart disease (CCHD) in all newborns using pulse oximetry or alternate peer-reviewed, evidence-based technologies.

Screening must be conducted after the first 24 hours of life or before a newborn is discharged from the facility.

Congenital heart defects affect 7-9 of every 1,000 live births and are the leading cause of death among infants with birth defects, with current screening methods identifying less than half of critical cases.

Pulse oximetry is identified as an effective noninvasive test for detecting critical, life-threatening congenital heart defects that would otherwise go undetected by routine clinical exams.

Effective date is July 1, 2013.