Currently, California is the only state in the nation that does not require universal newborn hearing screening. In 2003, approximately 20% of children born in California went untested. Without newborn screening, the average age of detection raises to between 2.5 and 3 years of age. During this time, children miss out on vital language, socialization, and cognitive skills.

AB 2651 expands the Newborn Hearing Screening Program to require all general acute care hospitals with licensed perinatal services or neonatal intensive care units to provide hearing screening to all newborns born at their facilities. Hospitals with less than 100 births per year may enter into formal agreements with certified outpatient providers to provide the test to their patients. Parents can opt-out of testing if it conflicts with their beliefs.

Hearing impairment is the most common birth defect with three out of every one-thousand children having some sort of congenital hearing loss. Early detection and intervention can reverse hearing loss in some children and allow others to receive treatment, so that they may develop at pace with others in their age group.

“Hearing testing should be a standard of care for all children, regardless of the type of hospital in which they are born. AB 2651 will guarantee that children born in California receive the same quality of care that is universally available in every other state in the country,” explained Assemblymember Jones.

The bill is sponsored by the March of Dimes and supported by organizations including the California Medical Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, Kaiser Permanente, the California Speech-Language-Hearing Association, Association of Regional Center Agencies, and the California Association of Nurse Practitioners.