(1) It hereby is declared to be a matter of public policy of the State of Oregon that in the interest of public health and the prevention of mental retardation, every infant, shall be given tests approved by the Oregon Health Authority for the detection of the disease of phenylketonuria and other metabolic diseases.

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(2) The authority by rule shall specify the diseases for which infants shall be tested under subsection (1) of this section, the appropriate time following delivery for collecting specimens, the manner in which the specimens are to be submitted, the persons responsible for submitting the specimens, the methods of testing and the manner of payment of the fees.

(3) The testing required by subsection (1) of this section shall not be required if the infant is being reared as an adherent to a religion the teachings of which are opposed to such testing. The person responsible for submitting specimens under the rules of the authority shall be responsible for submitting a statement signed by the infant’s parent that the infant is being so reared. The authority by rule shall prescribe the form of the statement.

(4) The authority shall adopt by rule a procedure whereby the fees established under subsection (2) of this section shall be waived and no infant refused service because of the parent’s inability to pay the fee.

(5) The authority by rule shall prescribe the procedure to be followed in cases where initial testing for metabolic diseases is administered too early to detect these diseases, where the sample submitted for testing is improperly collected and where a sample shows an abnormal result. The authority, within the limits of funds available from fees collected under this section, shall institute a pilot program for follow-up on abnormal test results. [1963 c.190 § 1; 1965 c.88 § 1; 1977 c.582 § 34; 1981 c.630 § 2; 1983 c.490 § 2; 2009 c.595 § 655]