HEALTH AND SAFETY – Amends, repeals, and adds to existing law to establish procedures regarding required tests and blood specimen collection for infants and newborns.

This Idaho bill (S 1014) updates health regulations for newborns by replacing outdated requirements with new, standardized procedures. It mandates that hospitals and healthcare providers apply antibiotic eye drops to all newborns to prevent gonorrhea eye infections (following CDC guidelines), require blood specimen collection for testing newborns for preventable diseases like phenylketonuria (PKU), and establish clear reporting protocols for eye inflammation or other reportable conditions. These changes directly affect hospitals, birth facilities, and healthcare providers handling newborns in Idaho. The bill repeals older, conflicting rules about eye treatments and reporting while aligning procedures with current medical standards.