A bill passed last week by the Idaho State Senate would send pregnant moms to prison if they’re caught using illegal drugs.
If the measure passes the Idaho House and receives the approval of Idaho Gov. Dirk Kempthorne, a Republican, the measure would be the first in the United States specifically to make it a crime for a pregnant woman to use illegal drugs.If caught, individuals could first face drug treatment or drug court. Beyond that, however, judges have the option of sending mothers to jail for up to five years or imposing a $50,000 fine.
This is a pretty complex issue, after all--no one wants to see babies addicted to or harmed by drugs. But advocates for pregnant women say the proposed law won’t help anyone, and will actually harm infants and their mothers.
Health care in prison is atrocious, and if this bill becomes law, the number of babies born in prison (which isn’t exactly a drug-free zone) would increase significantly.
Wyndi Anderson of National Advocates for Pregnant Women told me via email that this kind of law isn’t exactly a new idea: “[Similar bills have] been shot down in other states because in the end it is bad for the very infants they say want to help. If we really want to provide an opportunity for women to have healthy pregnancies then we need to think about ways we can support women and their families. These type of measures are almost always someone trying to further their career because no one who understands addiction and cares about children and women would dare to pass such a law.”
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why are we quick to punish and not quick to help?
A small dose of pot can help with the nausea w/o risk to the fetus. I'd hate to see a woman go to jail for trying to keep food down.
Just to be clear, I'm not advocating big bong hits for preganant women.
Then, think of the treatment a pregnant woman can expect once she gets to prison. The good news is that there has been a lot of backlash to this action in Idaho, and I am hopeful that it won't be made into law.
Ah, freedom's land with the highest rate of incarceration in the world, a wonderful testament to democracy.
Just watch your already rather high prenatal/neonatal mortality/morbidity rate rise as women avoid treatment for fear of hair analysis ... way to go ...
yeah, i remember when they were trying this shit several years back... south carolina was the flashpoint... forcing women to undergo drug testing in the hospital and then arresting 'em on the spot if they tested positive for anything...
there was a lot of work by NAPW, the American Public Health Association, nurses and physicians' organizations, drug policy groups, etc. i figure this can't really go far because it was fought pretty hard in the courts and was reversed years ago.
some of the arguments against jailing pregnant women for using are - it reduces the rates of at-risk women (even those who don't use) who make use of pre-natal care (and lack of pre-natal care is ridiculously more harmful to babies than most drug use); it interferes with attempts to get expecting mothers who use enrolled in successful drug treatment programs; it funnels kids into the foster care system; it's unevenly applied across class divisions; it compromises physicians' relationships with all their patients through law inforcement interference; and, as Lynn Paltrow, of NAPW, states in the article, medical conditions in prisons are abyssmal, which bodes a lot worse for the baby just about any of the above conditions, not to mention the mother...
thanks for bringing this up, jess...
The real issue that emerged in South Carolina was that the policy was overwhelmingly applied against poor, black women. Women with private insurance never entered into it. The entire thing was appalling, although it produced some of the funniest public service videos I've ever seen.
There's one bit where a nurse is interviewing a woman who's been snared by the program and is working as a prostitute. The nurse says "Well, you know, being a prostitute is just terrible. Don't you want to have self-respect and take good care of your baby?" and the woman replies "Not really. I have money and I'm self-sufficient."
evil fizz,
that sounds wild... i can't believe they aired that stuff... if you can dig up any way we could check those out, that'd be hot...
as far as the "real issue" with s.c. and whatnot, i'm not so sure about that. i've read several of the amicus briefs submitted in the case and social justice wasn't the primary issue that medical professionals were weighing in on. even the aclu (which has a really solid summary of the case here) wasn't all about the social justice angle...
now that i think about it, though, if, by the "real issue", you mean that the heart of why this kind of tragedy happens is race and class-motivated, i couldn't agree more.
peacea and blessings
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