Mandatory PKU screening: the other side of the looking glass.

The challenge that PKU screening programs face is to be effective without sacrificing individual liberty. Most states have assumed that this is impossible, and have enacted mandatory PKU screening tests. It now appears that in fact voluntary screening for PKU can be effective. Accordingly, it seems appropriate to reexamine existing mandatory screening statutes to determine if we can replace government coercion with voluntary informed consent. Focus should be placed on the proper role of the government in screening, and on improving the consent process, and not on those few couples who withhold consent.