In February 2026, the National Screening Programme for Newborns was extended from testing for three conditions (phenylketonuria, congenital hypothyroidism and cystic fibrosis) to free testing of newborns for 22 genetic and metabolic diseases.
In the context of poor health indicators compared to EU average (that is, 5.7 deaths per 1 000 newborns versus 3.3 deaths per 1 000 newborns), several pilot projects on neonatal screening for specific diseases were implemented over 2022–2025. Based on these projects results the collaboration of different stakeholders (academia, health services providers, professional and patient associations) led to a position paper in 2025. As a response, Romania launched the National Neonatal Screening Registry, a program that involves the free testing of newborns for 19 genetic and metabolic diseases.
The launch was organized by the Ministry of Health and hosted by the Presidential Administration on 27 February 2026. The programme was not yet included in the government decision that approves the national health programmes financed from the state budget.