Kenneth A. Pass

GLENMONT - Kenneth A. Pass died Saturday, September 5, 2015, following a lengthy and agonizing illness, ALS. He was born in Griffin, Georgia, on April 1, 1943, and was reminded of the significance of April 1st on many occasions throughout his life. He is survived by his wife, Karen Pass, two daughters, Lisa Ball (Todd) and Amy Pass, and two granddaughters, Clarissa and Ana Ball, all of the Albany area. He was predeceased by his parents, Chalmers and Evelyn Pass, both of Griffin. He received his Bachelor and Master's degrees in biology from Emory University and his PhD from the Medical University of South Carolina. After a post-doctoral position at Michigan State University, Dr. Pass took a position as a Research Scientist with the New York State Department of Health in 1977, from which he retired in 2010. During his tenure there he served as director of the NYS Newborn Screening Program for 23 years, guiding the program as it expanded from a screening panel of four conditions to one of 28, performing more than seven million tests each year on NY's newborn population of 250,000. During this expansion the program advanced its technologies from a simple agar-based test for phenylketonuria to use of DNA in screening for cystic fibrosis and other conditions, and its staff from six to 56. Dr. Pass was awarded a patent for a test used to detect severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) in newborns using this same specimen. He was the author of 88 manuscripts that were published in major scientific journals. Additionally he authored several editorials requested by journal editors and chapters in four books. When asked, he would say his most important work described a test to predict development of autism in a child, using the same newborn specimen. He was principle investigator on grants from National Institutes of Health (NIH), Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), and Centers for Disease Control (CDC) totaling more than $12M. Dr. Pass traveled extensively as an invited lecturer on newborn screening technologies, data management, policy, and ethics. He served as chair of several HRSA and CDC committees and was a member of numerous others throughout his career. He was a founding member of the national meetings of the US newborn screening programs that every state provides for its population. He was a member of the International Society for Neonatal Screening and served as president of that organization and chair of its Newborn Screening Committee. In lieu of flowers that wilt and die, his request was that donations be made to the ALS Association (19 Warehouse Row, Albany, NY 12205) and designated for research to find a cure for this devastating condition. A memorial service will be held at 1:00 p.m. on September 19 at the First United Methodist Church, 428 Kenwood Ave., Delmar, NY.