Step Away from my Baby's DNA!

By Heather on May 8, 2008 in family and natural living.

As sci-fi as this is going to sound, a bill just got passed enabling the federal government to obtain DNA samples from newborn babies for the purpose of preparing for a possible "public health emergency". What?

You'll have to read it to believe it. The article "Bush Signs Bill to Take All Newborns' DNA1" explains the bill and some of its possible implications (including genetic testing, scientific experimentation, and ongoing surveillance). Apparently, DNA has been collected from newborns and results given to the government; now there's a law protecting this practice.

There are many scary elements to this news. My concerns include unethical scientific experiments (that it could be done on my child's DNA is particularly infuriating) and the manipulation of what could be considered a "public health emergency". That phrase could be construed to mean any number of things. I'm not the paranoid type, but doesn't this seem like the first step in requiring all of us to have our DNA "registered"?

The mass screening for all newborns will begin in six months. I'm inclined to do what I can to keep my baby's DNA out of the federal catalog. It is possible that there could be "opt out" options, but I still struggle with the fact that if someone took a sample from my child, I would never know!

I'm sure that hospitals will soon begin a protocol for obtaining the samples, and that homebirthers would probably stand a better chance at flying under the radar. Doctors and midwives assisting at home births might even be more flexible. After all, there is no law—yet—requiring these samples to be taken.

Links

  1. http://www.infowars.com/?p=1896
» Heather's blog | 3 comments

Comments

1. NaturalCatholicMama on May 15, 08 at 8:30 am

Every time I have a baby, there's something new I have to know to opt out of. Yet another reason to minimize time with nursery staff, and to be there every second the baby has to be. Note to self: no blood draws on my babe at the hospital & take the placenta/cord home with me! I mean, really, that's probably the only way to be sure they don't snag the DNA record of the newborn w/o permission. Yag.

2. Heather on May 22, 08 at 1:48 pm

Yes, I suppose that's as good a precaution that could be taken at the hospital. Especially since they've already been sampling DNA in every state - and I bet the parents weren't aware. Scary. I've also heard, though, of people having trouble keeping their baby in sight while at the hospital. At some places it would be a major fight to prevent unaccounted for time with the staff...but definitely worth the fight, at any rate.

Good call on the placenta and cord! Doesn't it seem, though, that there might be other ways to obtain a sample? How could everything possibly be contained after the birth? Of course, this would assume a situation in which the hospital was absolutely determined to get a covert sample, for which I'm not sure I'm prepared to give them credit.

3. Heather on May 22, 08 at 1:50 pm

Posted with permission, here's a question my friend Elena emailed to me:

Heather,

I was talking about your blog on newborn DNA samples at lunch yesterday with my coworkers and they looked the bill up. It's attached, but one of my coworkers said it doesn't look like it will be mandatory...where did you find info on this? Not sure what is right.

Thanks, Elena

And my response:

Elena,

Yes, I don't think it will be mandatory...BUT probably what will happen is that the hospitals will implement the program and it will be lumped in with the other "tests" that they don't ASK if you want to do, they just do them. For example, vaccinations are not mandatory, but they just do them on your baby without asking. If you don't want them, you have to tell them and sign a bunch of forms. After our experience in the hospital I would not trust that my wishes would be respected, since hospital communication is very poor and I would worry that the sample would accidentally taken.

If I sound paranoid, maybe it's because the DNA sampling is already being done in all 50 states (although not on every baby—more randomly) and this law is basically going to ensure their butts are covered for the past sampling and ensure that it will stay unchallenged in the future.

:)
Heather

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