(a) Unless it is medically inadvisable, each hospital shall allow a pregnant patient to arrange for the donation of the blood extracted from the umbilical cord of the patient’s newborn child to a certified public cord blood bank.
(b) A patient who agrees to donate cord blood to a public cord blood bank may not be charged for the costs of collecting, storing, or transporting the cord blood.
(c) A hospital is not required to collect cord blood if in the professional judgment of a licensed physician the collection of the cord blood would threaten the health of the mother or newborn child.
(d) A hospital or hospital employee, including a physician, nurse, or other medical staff, may not be required to collect cord blood if the collection of cord blood conflicts with the bona fide religious practices and beliefs of the hospital or hospital employee.
(e) This section may not be construed to require a hospital to arrange for the donation of blood extracted from umbilical cords.
(f) (1) The Department, in consultation with obstetricians, the Maryland Hospital Association, and interested groups, shall develop educational materials concerning the values, uses, and donation of umbilical cord blood for the purposes of paragraph (2) of this subsection.
(2) Each obstetrician and hospital that provides obstetrical services shall distribute the educational materials described in paragraph (1) of this subsection to pregnant patients.
Copyright ©2024 LegalFix. All rights reserved. LegalFix is not a law firm, is not licensed to practice law, and does not provide legal advice, services, or representation. The information on this website is an overview of the legal insurance products you can purchase—or that may be provided by your employer as an employee benefit or by your credit union or other membership group as a membership benefit.
LegalFix provides its members with access to legal services through a network of provider law firms. LegalFix, its corporate entity, and its officers, directors, employees, agents, and contractors do not provide legal advice, services, or representation—directly or indirectly.
The articles and information on the site are not legal advice and should not be relied upon—they are for information purposes only. You should become a LegalFix member to get legal services from one of our provider law firms.
You should not disclose confidential or potentially incriminating information to LegalFix—you should only communicate such information to your provider law firm.
The benefits and legal services described in the LegalFix legal plans are not always available in all states or with all plans. See the legal plan Benefit Overview and the more comprehensive legal plan contract during checkout for coverage details in your state.
Use of this website, the purchase of legal insurance products, and access to the LegalFix network of provider law firms are subject to the LegalFix Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
