BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



          SENATE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                             Senator Ricardo Lara, Chair
                            2015 - 2016  Regular  Session

          SB 1095 (Pan) - Newborn screening program
          
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          |Version: February 17, 2016      |Policy Vote: HEALTH 9 - 0       |
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          |Urgency: No                     |Mandate: No                     |
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          |Hearing Date: May 27, 2016      |Consultant: Brendan McCarthy    |
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          Bill  
          Summary:  SB 1095 would require the Department of Public Health  
          to expand the existing newborn screening program to include any  
          condition that has been adopted by the federal Recommended  
          Uniform Screening Panel.


          *********** ANALYSIS ADDENDUM - SUSPENSE FILE ***********
             The following information is revised to reflect amendments 
                      adopted by the committee on May 27, 2016




          Fiscal  
          Impact:  
           One-time costs of $2.4 million and ongoing costs of $4.3  
            million per year to screen for two diseases (MPS-1 and Pompe  
            disease) that have already been approved for inclusion in the  
            federal Recommended Uniform Screening Panel (Genetic Disease  
            Testing Fund). The ongoing costs above would cover initial  
            screening tests, follow up tests for positive results, and  
            initial case management for confirmed diagnoses. Adding these  







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            two conditions would require an increase in the existing $113  
            fee charged for screening by about $9. Most health insurance,  
            including Medi-Cal, cover the costs of the screening fee.

           Ongoing costs of about $2.5 million per year for coverage of  
            the increased screening fee by the Medi-Cal program (General  
            Fund and federal funds). Medi-Cal covers the cost of the  
            screening exam and Medi-Cal pays for about 50% of the births  
            in the state.

           Unknown future costs to include additional diseases in the  
            state's newborn screening program as they are added to the  
            federal Recommended Uniform Screening Panel (Genetic Disease  
            Testing Fund). The costs to include additional diseases will  
            vary depending on the specific costs for testing of that  
            disease. In recent years, anticipated costs to include  
            additional diseases in the state's newborn screening program  
            have generally been in the low millions per condition, per  
            year.

           Likely long-term savings due to improved clinical outcomes  
            from early testing and treatment (various funds). When  
            considering whether to include additional diseases in the  
            Recommended Uniform Screening Panel, the federal advisory  
            committee considers issues such as the reliability of the  
            screening test, the availability of treatments, the benefits  
            of early diagnosis, and the anticipated impact on health  
            outcomes from additional screening. Specific information about  
            the long-term impacts on health outcomes or avoided health  
            care costs are often not available, because the diseases that  
            are considered for inclusion are rare and treatments are  
            evolving rapidly. However, new diseases are added when the  
            advisory panel finds that there are benefits from screening,  
            primarily the ability to avoid long-term health consequences  
            with early intervention. Therefore, it is reasonable to  
            believe that including additional diseases that have been  
            approved by the federal government will reduce state health  
            care spending in the long-run.


          Author  
          Amendments:  make technical corrections.










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