Text: HF02298                           Text: HF02300
Text: HF02200 - HF02299                 Text: HF Index
Bills and Amendments: General Index     Bill History: General Index

House File 2299

Partial Bill History

Bill Introduced: H.J. 259
Complete Bill History

Bill Text

PAG LIN
  1  1    Section 1.  Section 232.77, subsection 2, Code 1997, is
  1  2 amended to read as follows:
  1  3    2.  a.  The health practitioner attending the birth of a
  1  4 child shall perform or cause to be performed a medically
  1  5 relevant test, as defined in section 232.73, on the child.
  1  6 The test shall be performed as soon after the child's birth as
  1  7 is medically prudent.
  1  8    b.  If at any other time a health practitioner discovers in
  1  9 a child physical or behavioral symptoms of the effects of
  1 10 exposure to cocaine, heroin, amphetamine, methamphetamine, or
  1 11 other illegal drugs, or combinations or derivatives thereof,
  1 12 which were not prescribed by a health practitioner, or if the
  1 13 health practitioner has determined through examination of the
  1 14 natural mother of the child that the child was exposed in
  1 15 utero, the health practitioner may perform or cause to be
  1 16 performed a medically relevant test, as defined in section
  1 17 232.73, on the child.
  1 18    c.  The health practitioner shall report any positive
  1 19 results of such a medically relevant test on the child to the
  1 20 department.  The department shall begin an investigation
  1 21 pursuant to section 232.71 upon receipt of such a report.  A
  1 22 positive test result obtained prior to the birth of a child
  1 23 shall not be used for the criminal prosecution of a parent for
  1 24 acts and omissions resulting in intrauterine exposure of the
  1 25 child to an illegal drug.  
  1 26                           EXPLANATION 
  1 27    This bill requires upon the birth of a child that the
  1 28 attending health practitioner perform or cause to be performed
  1 29 a medically relevant test for the presence of illegal drugs.
  1 30 The test is to be performed as soon as is medically prudent.
  1 31 Code chapter 232 defines the term "health practitioner" to
  1 32 include a licensed physician or surgeon, osteopath,
  1 33 osteopathic physician or surgeon, dentist, optometrist,
  1 34 podiatric physician, or chiropractor, a resident or intern of
  1 35 any such profession, and any registered nurse or licensed
  2  1 practical nurse.
  2  2    Under current law, a health practitioner may perform or
  2  3 cause a medically relevant test to be performed if there are
  2  4 symptoms of exposure to illegal drugs or other reason to
  2  5 believe a child may have been exposed to illegal drugs.  A
  2  6 medically relevant test is defined in Code chapter 232 to mean
  2  7 a test for various illegal drugs and may include a drug urine
  2  8 screen test.
  2  9    Under current law, a medically relevant test which produces
  2 10 a positive result must be reported to the department of human
  2 11 services which is required to perform a child abuse
  2 12 assessment.  
  2 13 LSB 3867YH 77
  2 14 jp/jl/8

Text: HF02298                           Text: HF02300
Text: HF02200 - HF02299                 Text: HF Index
Bills and Amendments: General Index     Bill History: General Index

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