Black patients and those with public insurance are more likely than their White, wealthier counterparts to be screened for marijuana use during pregnancy, researchers have found.
The data build on a growing body of evidence that disparities in age, insurance type, and race affect which women undergo drug testing during pregnancy and come under scrutiny from state social service agencies.
Many states require healthcare facilities to notify child protective services or law enforcement of a positive drug screening, but the consequences for women vary greatly from state to state. Twenty-four states and the District of Columbia consider prenatal drug use to be child abuse. But recent evidence suggests that urine drug screenings may not be reliable but can lead to separation of parents and babies.
Dr Rebecca Stone
"In many ways, the health system is better equipped to address these concerns than the criminal justice system," Rebecca Stone, PhD, associate professor of sociology and criminal justice at Suffolk University, Boston, Massachusetts, told Medscape Medical News. "They shouldn't be criminal justice problems in many cases," added Stone, who was not involved with the study.
The researchers analyzed data from the 2045 patients who gave birth between January and July 2020. Of those, roughly one fourth (24%) underwent a urine drug screening.
