Longtime readers may remember the topic of Newborn Screening...the blood stick they do for testing soon after birth where the sample is frequently saved...and my inquiring into my state's policies on saving the sample. I'm a big fan of informed consent and giving parents the option to refuse, destroy, or save private medical information and specimens. I'd even pointed to MN a couple years ago as a great example of giving parents this option via MN Dept of Health forms. Well, update, new laws in MN actually call for all specimens to be destroyed. No opt-out because it is the default. Now, it is "opt-in" requiring parents to formally request specimens and test results be saved. Bravo! The state also makes clear that parents have a right--risky but still a right--to not have their children tested at all. Yesterday, curiously, I got a letter from the Mayo Clinic--following MN law--requiring they give patients the option to refuse having medical records used for re...
A view for the modern parent.