The Bill Nobody Noticed: National DNA Databank

In April of 2008, President Bush signed into law S.1858 which allows the federal government to screen the DNA of all newborn babies in the U.S. This was to be implemented within 6 months meaning that this collection is now being carried out. Congressman Ron Paul states that this bill is the first step towards the establishment of a national DNA database.

S.1858, known as The Newborn Screening Saves Lives Act of 2007, is justified as a "national contingency plan" in that it represents preparation for any sort of public health emergency. The bill states that the federal government should "continue to carry out, coordinate, and expand research in newborn screening" and "maintain a central clearinghouse of current information on newborn screening... ensuring that the clearinghouse is available on the Internet and is updated at least quarterly". Sections of the bill also make it clear that DNA may be used in genetic experiments and tests. Read the full bill: http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xp...

Twila Brase, president of the Citizens' Council on Health Care warns that this new law represents the beginning of nationwide genetic testing. Brase states that S.1858 and H.R. 3825, the House version of the bill, will:
• Establish a national list of genetic conditions for which newborns and children are to be tested.
• Establish protocols for the linking and sharing of genetic test results nationwide.
• Build surveillance systems for tracking the health status and health outcomes of individuals diagnosed at birth with a genetic defect or trait.
• Use the newborn screening program as an opportunity for government agencies to identify, list, and study "secondary conditions" of individuals and their families.
• Subject citizens to genetic research without their knowledge or consent.
Read her entire analysis of the implications of this bill here: http://www.cchconline.org/pdf/S_1858_NB...

Brase states that under this bill, "The DNA taken at birth from every citizen is essentially owned by the government, and every citizen becomes a potential subject of government-sponsored genetic research." All 50 states are now routinely providing results of genetic screenings to the Department of Homeland Security and this bill will establish the legality of that practice plus include DNA.

Ron Paul has also vigorously argued against this bill making the following comments before the US House of Representatives:
"I cannot support legislation...that exceeds the Constitutional limitations on federal power or in any way threatens the liberty of the American people. I must oppose it."

"S. 1858 gives the federal bureaucracy the authority to develop a model newborn screening program. Madame Speaker, the federal government lacks both the constitutional authority and the competence to develop a newborn screening program adequate for a nation as large and diverse as the United States. …"

"Those of us in the medical profession should be particularly concerned about policies allowing government officials and state-favored interests to access our medical records without our consent … My review of S. 1858 indicates the drafters of the legislation made no effort to ensure these newborn screening programs do not violate the privacy rights of parents and children, in fact, by directing federal bureaucrats to create a contingency plan for newborn screening in the event of a 'public health' disaster, this bill may lead to further erosions of medical privacy. As recent history so eloquently illustrates, politicians are more than willing to take, and people are more than willing to cede, liberty during times of 'emergency." http://www.naturalnews.com/z025116.html (12.18.2008, Patty Donovan, citizen journalist) See all articles by this author Email this author

President Bush Signs S. 1858 into Law

On Thursday, April 24, 2008, the President signed into law:

S. 1858, the "Newborn Screening Saves Lives Act of 2007," which authorizes through fiscal year 2012 new and existing programs at the Department of Health and Human Services concerning newborn screening. http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2008/04/20080424-17.html

Ed. note: If you have a child in a hospital that child becomes the property of the U.S. Corp. which is owned and run by the rottenfeller Crime Family. Your child is NOT your child. Your child is a slave of the rottenfeller Crime Family. If you LOVE your unborn child do the following: Have your child born at home with a doctor in attendance who will not register your child as a slave of the rottenfeller Crime Family. Do NOT notify anyone about the birth of your child. Do NOT send your child to any public or private school. Do NOT get a SSN for your child. Do NOT enroll your child in any school of any kind. Do NOT let them get a driver's license or any license of any kind. Once your child turns 18 he can decide if he wants to become a slave of the rottenfeller crime family.

This bill has become law. [Last Updated: Nov 6, 2008]

Apr 24, 2008: Became Public Law No: 110-204.

See the Related Legislation page for other bills related to this one and a list of subject terms that have been applied to this bill. Sometimes the text of one bill or resolution is incorporated into another, and in those cases the original bill or resolution, as it would appear here, would seem to be abandoned.

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Sen. Christopher Dodd [D-CT]

Cosponsors [as of 2008-11-07]

Sen. Daniel Inouye [D-HI]

Sen. Amy Klobuchar [D-MN]

Sen. Susan Collins [R-ME]

Sen. Richard Lugar [R-IN]

Sen. Benjamin Cardin [D-MD]

Sen. Edward Kennedy [D-MA]

Sen. Maria Cantwell [D-WA]

Sen. Orrin Hatch [R-UT]

Sen. Norm Coleman [R-MN]

Sen. Richard Durbin [D-IL]

Sen. Barbara Mikulski [D-MD]

Sen. Blanche Lincoln [D-AR]

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse [D-RI]

Sen. Thomas Harkin [D-IA]

Sen. Sherrod Brown [D-OH]

Sen. Christopher Bond [R-MO]

Sen. Hillary Clinton [D-NY]

Sen. Robert Casey [D-PA]

Sen. Patty Murray [D-WA]

Sen. Bernard Sanders [I-VT]

Sen. Tim Johnson [D-SD]

Track S. 1858

To cite this information, click a citation format for a suggestion: Bibliography | Wikipedia.

GovTrack.us. S. 1858--110th Congress (2007): Newborn Screening Saves Lives Act of 2007, GovTrack.us (database of federal legislation) http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s110-1858   (accessed Dec 20, 2008)

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s110-1858
|title - S. 1858
|author - 110th Congress (2007)
|date - Jul 23, 2007
|work - Legislation
|publisher - GovTrack.us
|quote - Newborn Screening Saves Lives Act of 2007