Unless otherwise specified the following definitions apply:
(1) The term “metabolic disorder” means a disorder which results in a defect in the function of a specific enzyme or protein.
(2) The term “hypothyroidism” means those clinical conditions which result from abnormally low circulating levels of thyroid hormone.
(3) The term “newborn” means any infant born in the District who is under 4 weeks of age.
(4) The term “phenylketonuria,” hereinafter referred to as “PKU,” means the metabolic disease of the newborn in which metabolites of phenylalanine appear in urine.
(5) The term “homocystinuria” means a condition resulting from one of several genetically determined errors of methionine metabolism.
(6) The term “galactosemia” means a condition involving the inability to convert galactose to glucose.
(7) The term “maple syrup urine disease” means a condition resulting from the impairment of branched chain alpha-ketoacid dehydrogenase.
(8) The term “sickle hemoglobinopathy” means a condition in which a mutation in the hemoglobin results in abnormally shaped red blood cells that obstruct normal circulation and cause inadequate oxygenation of the body's tissues and vital organs. The term “sickle hemoglobinopathy” includes sickle cell anemia (homozygous sickle cell disease), sickle cell hemoglobin C disease, and sickle cell beta thalassemia.
(9) The terms “hospital” and “maternity center” mean those terms as they are defined in § 44-501(a)(1) and (2).
CREDIT(S)
(Apr. 29, 1980, D.C. Law 3-65, § 3, 27 DCR 1087; July 25, 1985, D.C. Law 6-13, § 2(a), 32 DCR 3235.)
HISTORICAL AND STATUTORY NOTES
Prior Codifications
1981 Ed., § 6-312.
Legislative History of Laws
For legislative history of D.C. Law 3-65, see Historical and Statutory Notes following § 7-831.
Law 6-13, the “District of Columbia Newborn Screening Requirement Act of 1979 Amendments Act of 1985,” was introduced in Council and assigned Bill No. 6-46, which was referred to the Committee on Human Services. The Bill was adopted on first and second readings on April 30, 1985, and May 14, 1985, respectively. Signed by the Mayor on May 30, 1985, it was assigned Act No. 6-27 and transmitted to both House of Congress for its review.