Great news from Washington on caring for vulnerable newborns:

On September 25, President Donald Trump issued an Executive Order on Protecting Vulnerable Newborn and Infant Children.

The Executive Order responds to concerns that hospitals have refused to provide medical screening and stabilizing treatment to vulnerable newborns, including those who are premature, born with disabilities, or born in medical distress.  The Executive Order explains that hospitals may issue these refusals “because they believe these infants may not survive, may have to live with long-term disabilities, or may have a quality-of-life deemed to be inadequate.”

The Executive Order clarifies that all individuals, including these vulnerable babies, are protected under the law.  Examples of federal protections include:

• Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) (42 U.S.C. 1395dd): Requires that every individual who comes to a hospital emergency department receive appropriate medical screening and stabilization or transfer.  
• Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act (29 U.S.C. 794): Prevents recipients of federal funding from discriminating against individuals with disabilities.  
• The Born-Alive Infants Protection Act (1 U.S.C. 8): Clarifies that an infant “born alive at any stage of development” is a person under federal law.

The Executive Order places a number of requirements on the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS):

• The Secretary must ensure that all federal funding recipients understand their obligations under federal law.  In particular:
• They have an “obligation to provide an appropriate medical screening examination and stabilizing treatment or transfer, when extremely premature infants are born alive or infants are born with disabilities.”
• They “may not unlawfully discourage parents from seeking medical treatment for their infant child solely because of their infant child’s disability.”
• They must “allow the infant patients to be transferred to a more suitable facility if appropriate treatment is not possible at the initial location.”

• The Secretary shall investigate complaints of violations of federal laws that occurred respecting infants in need of stabilizing treatment whose parents sought medical care for them.  The Secretary shall take appropriate enforcement action against violations of federal law.
• The Secretary shall “clarify, in an easily understandable format, the process by which parents and hospital staff may submit such complaints for investigation under applicable Federal laws.”

• The Secretary shall prioritize grant funding to:

• “Research to develop treatments that may improve survival — especially survival without impairment — of infants …who have an emergency medical condition in need of stabilizing treatment.”

• “Programs and activities …that provide training to medical personnel regarding the provision of life-saving medical treatment” for these infants.

 The Secretary is directed to issue regulations or guidance, as necessary, to implement this order.

To learn more:

Executive order: https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/executive-order-protecting-vulnerable-newborn-infant-children/

Press release from HHS: https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2020/09/25/hhs-secretary-azar-statement-on-executive-order-to-protect-infants-born-alive.html