There are many barriers one may face in deciding to fight addictions. However, women, particularly pregnant women, seem to face many more than their male counterparts. One such way in which pregnant women have a barrier to treatment is the limited number of facilities that serve pregnant women. Further barriers include: childcare responsibilities, stigmatization, and the inability to pay for treatment, inadequate financial resources, and threats of legal interventions. Regardless of cause and …show more content…
In the 1980s when maternal prenatal substance abuse became a larger issue for public health debate, more attention was focused and policy was created. In 1997, Whitner v. South Carolina was a state Supreme Court case that upheld a mother could be charged with endangerment of the child if it was a viable fetus. Furthermore, in October 2000, the U.S. Supreme Court held the case of Ferguson v. South Carolina. In this case it was determined that a fetus was not a child and the women who abused drugs during pregnancy could not be incarcerated for anything (Dailard & Nash, 2000). Every state has battled the question of whether it is morally wrong for a baby do be born addicted and what should be done to give justice to that baby and protect him or her from further harm. Kentucky has faced several of these concerns as well. The state of Kentucky has a Maternal Mental Health Act of 1992, which precludes women from being charged with crimes if they ingest drugs or alcohol during their pregnancy. In this act, it states that punitive actions taken against pregnant women who are abusing substances would create additional problems such as discouraging them from seeking essential prenatal care. Ina Cochran was charged with first-degree wanton endangerment in 2005 after she gave birth to her child who tested positive …show more content…
Even though it punishes the mother if she is found guilty, it does not necessarily help prevent the problem from occurring. The policy for testing the mother includes: (1) prenatal screening cannot be used as prosecutorial evidence, (2) pregnant women must be informed of the test, (3) if positive, possible charges of abuse/ neglected child could come forth under KRS 600.020(1), (4) any physician may administer a toxicology test to a pregnant woman under the physician’s care within 8 hours after delivery to determine if there has been a substance ingested, (5) if the woman has obstetrical complications that are medical indications of possible use of a substance for nonmedical purpose then they have reason to drug test the woman, (6) a physician can administer a toxicology test on a newborn infant if the attending person has reason to believe, based on a medical assessment, of the mother or the child, that the mother used such substances for a nonmedical use during pregnancy (KRS600.020(1),