Parents have protested that the state of New Jersey is “secretly retaining” the blood of their newborns in a “creepy database” without getting their permission.
The Institute for Justice, a nonprofit public interest legal firm, announced in a news release that a federal class-action complaint has been filed against the state of New Jersey, alleging that the state keeps blood samples from infants for up to 23 years.
Two employees of the New Jersey Department of Health and one employee of the Division of Family Health Services are named as defendants in the case.
According to New Jersey law, all babies have to be given a blood sample to be checked for illnesses like immune issues, hormone deficits, and cystic fibrosis. Laws pertaining to these tests are the same in every US state.
Per The Independent:
A group of parents have accused the state of New Jersey of “secretly retaining” their newborn babies’ blood in a “creepy database” without their consent.
In a news release, the non-profit, public interest law firm the Institute for Justice revealed that a class-action federal lawsuit has been filed challenging the state’s alleged practice of keeping newborns’ blood samples in New Jersey for up to 23 years.
The lawsuit names two people from the New Jersey Department of Health and one person from the Division of Family Health Services as defendants.
New Jersey law states that all newborns must submit a blood sample to be tested for diseases such as cystic fibrosis, hormonal deficiencies and immunity problems. All US states have similar laws around such tests.
Under this law, the baby’s heel is pricked and blood collected on a card.
But, the group of parents is now accusing the state of keeping these samples and allowing other parties, such as law enforcement, to use them.
Mother-of-two Hannah Lovaglio said in an Institute for Justice video that knowing her baby’s blood had been kept was “unsettling”.
“It’s not right that the state can enter an incredibly intimate moment, the tender days of childbirth, and take something from our children which is then held on to for 23 years,” said Ms Lovaglio in the release.
In recent years Silicon Valley has been using young people’s blood in an attempt to make themselves look younger.
