Under a new law signed by Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf, health care providers will be required to inform the parents of newborns about the benefits of screening their infants for cytomegalovirus.

Bookshelf with law booksCytomegalovirus, or CMV, is found in roughly one out of every 200 babies born in the U.S. and the most infectious cause of birth defects.  Under the new law the Pennsylvania Department of Health must post information about CMV on its web site and  health care providers must give parents or guardians of newborns information about CMV and offer a screening or referral within 21 days if the newborn fails the initial newborn hearing screening; hearing loss is the most common long-term effect of CMV.

Learn more about the new law and its requirements in this Wolf administration news release.