NYC- Open for public comment! NYC Department of Health proposed amendments to the Health Code To comment online, by email, mail, fax or in person, see instructions here: nyc.gov/html/doh/downloads/pdf/notice/2014/noi-11-13.pdf Comment deadline: April 23rd Proposals ________________________________________ 1. Amend Health code §13.03(b)(3) to require reporting of negative hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA or nucleic acid tests (NAT) (electronic laboratory reporting only). This will allow the Health Department to: • Identify which patients screened for HCV antibody receive appropriate follow-up RNA testing • Estimate how many patients in NYC are being treated for HCV and are cured • Be able to focus outreach and education efforts to specific populations in need of appropriate diagnosis and treatment ________________________________________ 2. Amend Health code §13.03(b)(3) to require reporting of negative hepatitis B virus (HBV) test results for children for children ages 168 days to 1,825 days (six months of age up to the fifth birthday). Requires reporting of HBsAg (hepatitis B surface antigen) and anti-HBs (hepatitis B surface antibody) • After completing the recommended three dose hepatitis B vaccine series, children born to hepatitis B infected mothers are recommended to have a post-vaccination serology testing (testing for HBsAg and anti-HBs). With the test results, the Department is able to refer the HBV infected or susceptible children to obtain medical care or additional vaccination to ensure they are protected. The Department’s Perinatal Hepatitis B Prevention Unit staff spend approximately 25% of their time contacting medical providers directly to obtain the test results; however test results are not obtained for approximately 30% of the 1,800 babies managed annually due to families being lost to follow-up. The proposed amendment will assist the Program to more efficiently and effectively obtain the post-vaccination test results for these high risk children. • Will improve surveillance data, more accurately determining how many perinatal hepatitis B infections occur each year. The Program will also be able to estimate more accurately the percentage of children who are being tested, as well as measure the timeliness of testing by the medical providers serving these children. To comment online, by email, mail, fax or in person, see instructions here: nyc.gov/html/doh/downloads/pdf/notice/2014/noi-11-13.pdf Comment deadline: April 23rd
Posted on: Thu, 27 Mar 2014 14:53:02 +0000
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