Question

Does a mother who is found guilty of using drugs during the conception of a child deserve the opportunity to earn back her parental rights?

Answer 1

• The phenomenon of substance abuse during pregnancy has fostered much controversy, specifically regarding treatment vs. punishment.As it happens, there is a noticeably wide range of responses to this matter in the various states of the United States, ranging from a strictly criminal perspective to one that does emphasize the importance of the mother's treatment.
• Maternal prenatal substance abuse is defined as chronic use of alcohol and/or other drugs.
• An infant should be considered drug-exposed and in need of some level of intervention if the mother states she has used illegal drugs during pregnancy or if drug exposure is shown through toxicology tests of the infant.
• When an infant is identified as drug-exposed, the infant and his/her family should be assessed by hospital health providers (with assistance when necessary from developmental, drug treatment, and other specialists) using a standardized assessment battery to determine what intervention, if any, is needed.
• An identified drug-exposed infant should be reported to child protective services only if factors in addition to prenatal drug exposure show that the infant is at risk for abuse or neglect
• A drug-exposed infant should be removed from the custody if his/her parent only if the parent are unable to protect and care for the infant and either support services are not sufficient to manage this risk, or the parent have refused such services.
• If the parent are not capable of resuming custody of the infant within 12–18 months, despite receiving services to make reunification possible, a permanent alternative placement should be promptly provided for the infant.
• Family drug courts for drug-exposed infants should be established with the goals of keeping infants with their biological mothers if there is no documented risk of abuse/neglect, providing court ordered treatment and plans for reunification.
• A parent with a drug addiction may be denied the right to share in the care of her child, or physical custody, if he is using drugs. Likewise, the court may take away a parent’s legal custody or right to make decisions for the child if the parent does not seek substance abuse counseling or make other efforts to achieve sobriety.
• The availability of resources, living conditions, benefits and medical services to drug using mothers and their infants including benefits should not be denied to drug-using women who comply with their court-ordered treatment program.
• A woman who uses illegal drugs during pregnancy should not be subject to special criminal prosecution on the basis of allegations that her illegal drug use harms the fetus. Nor should states adopt special civil commitment provisions for pregnant women who use drugs.