Babies born to drug addicted mothers go through withdrawal and require special care, but in an effort to “address longstanding inequities,” a large hospital system in New England, said this week it will no longer issue a report to state welfare agencies when a baby is born with drugs in its system.
The Mass General Brigham hospital group, which has obstetrics and gynecology wards in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, says reporting such cases “disproportionately affects black people” and does not necessarily signal child abuse or neglect.
Mass General Brigham announced Tuesday that it was revamping its policies toward pregnant women with substance abuse disorders.
The change will reportedly require written consent for toxicology testing of “pregnant people” outside of emergencies, Boston.com reported, using a gender neutral euphemism for “expectant mothers.” Testing could also be ordered “if the results could change a doctor’s medical approach to their care,” the news outlet added.
If babies are born with “substance exposure” alone, they will no longer be immediately reported to state welfare agencies unless there are other concerns the baby is abused or neglected, Mass General Brigham said.
The hospital group claimed studies have shown that black [pregnant women] are more likely to be drug tested and reported to welfare agencies than white [pregnant women].
Mass General Brigham’s appropriately named Senior Medical Director for Substance Use Disorder, Sarah Wakeman, said in a statement that the policy is “based on sound science.”
“Our new perinatal testing and reporting policy is the latest step in our efforts to address longstanding inequities in substance use disorder care and to provide compassionate, evidence-based support to families, while addressing substance use disorder as a treatable health condition,” Wakeman said.