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Psychology

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Introduction

Expectant mothers who misuse substances like tobacco, alcohol, and other illegal

drugs are placed at the node of civic health and felonious justice intercession. The effects of

substance use by these mothers on their individual health and the infant’s health is a civic

concern, since experts in this profession are committed to enhancing infant and maternal

health. Additionally, over the previous three eras, substance use has been categorized as a

criminal offence while the ‘fetal protection initiatives’ raised concerns to increase sanctions

over aberrant women. Expectant mothers who use illegal substances, expressly women of

color and those in marginalized communities are most likely to be subjected to high

surveillance and may get arrested, prosecuted, convicted, or their pregnancy might be

terminated (Paltrow & Flavin, 2013).

Concerns on exposure of unborn babies to drugs have resulted to rise in new

regulations and applications of the existing ones which indent to stop pregnant women from

substance use and to impose punishment on those who take the substances. However, the

implementation of these regulations raises queries of ‘fetal personhood’ and how far the

government should go in controlling the bodies of expectant mothers. Currently, substance

use during gravidity is categorized as child abuse in 17 states under ‘civil child welfare

statutes’, while in 3 states (Minnesota, Wisconsin, and South Dakota), it serves as a reason

for civil commitment (Stone, 2015). In other states such as Tennessee, drug use for expectant

mothers was entirely criminalized via legislation. The Tennessee governor Bill Haslam

signed the adjustment the states fetal homicide regulation, permitting the prosecution of

expectant mothers who use narcotics.

Substance use by pregnant women is linked to infant disorders and deaths. Women

who use drugs when they are pregnant are usually caught by medical professionals during
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their medical care. The drug abusing women tent to seek ways of avoiding detention. In most

cases, these women result to evading medical care, which might as well affect the health of

the infants. Although these laws are important in stopping substance drug abuse amongst

pregnant women, they go too far in causing harm and violating the law of equality (Feeney,

2014).

Tactics for Evading Detection

Women who use drugs while pregnant result to finding ways of playing with the

authorities and those concerned with the health of the unborn babies to evade detection. Some

women tent to remain honest regardless of the circumstances, hoping that their honesty will

show to doctors that they are good mothers, despite their urge for drugs (Stone, 2015).

However, others use dangerous tactics such as isolation of oneself from family and friends

who may notice the drug use, hiding or repudiating the gravidity, timing prenatal schedules to

ascertain that drug abuse is not detected at the time of drug tests, evading some prenatal

schedules, or entirely evading prenatal care.

Honesty

Some women choose to employ honesty and continue seeking medical care, not afraid

of the consequences. Some feel that employing honesty would tell medical practitioners that

they are good mothers, although they use drugs (Stone, 2015). They act honestly with the

hope that doctors would perceive them as mothers who are concerned with the health of their

unborn babies, as opposed to the narrative that drug abusing mothers are careless,

unconcerned, and selfish. However, others are not always pleased with the results of honest

actions, and they result to picking other strategies.

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Social Separation and Pregnancy Denial

Another highly employed strategy of evading detection is avoiding family members

and friends who may report these women to the concerned authorities (Stone, 2015). For

some mothers, they go to the extent of denying or concealing their pregnancies. When the

pregnancies are hidden, it means that the unborn babies do not get the care they need.

Evading Medical Care

Lastly, avoiding medical maintenance is the major tactic used by women who abuse

drugs while they are pregnant (Stone, 2015). The tactic includes planning of visits in relation

to substance use to ensure that any test results would be negative, hopping some visits, or

completely evading prenatal care.

‘Prenatal care appointments’ give practitioners the chance to link women with the

necessary resources, to check them for hazardous sicknesses or injuries, to check them for

intimate spouse exploitation victimization, and to execute other civic health intrusions (Stone,

2015). Adoption of policies and regulations which scare expectant mothers away from check-

ups, health amenities, and clinics lose the chance to mediate and encourage infant and

maternal health. Additionally, these policies discourage mothers who were actively attending

prenatal appointments from disclosing medically necessary information concerning their drug

abuse. Although some women chose to be honest, their encounters with the medical

practitioners discouraged them from employing honesty in the future.

Law critics hold that this kind of policy continues to discourage addicted mothers

from looking for treatment necessary to reduce or stop the addiction. ‘The American Civil

Liberties Union of Tennessee’ specifically labeled this policy as “dangerous” and declared

that it possesses “serious constitutional concerns regarding equal treatment under the law”

(Feeney, 2014).
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Conclusion

Any law that prohibits an addicted mother from seeking medical help for themselves

and their unborn babies is dangerous and should not be implemented. From the tactics used

by the drug abusing women to avoid being caught, it is evident that these policies are causing

more harm than good. Also, this law has raised concerns over the amount of control the

government has over women’s bodies. Critics of the law feel that the policies do not hold the

constitutional requirements of gender equality. Some feel that although these unborn babies

have both parents, the mothers are put under more pressure by these policies compared to the

fathers. Therefore, these laws are harmful and should not be implemented by other states.
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References

Paltrow, L. M., & Flavin, J. (2013). Arrests of and forced interventions on pregnant women

in the United States, 1973–2005: Implications for women's legal status and public

health. Journal of Health Politics, Policy and Law, 38(2), 299-343.

Stone, R. (2015). Pregnant women and substance use: fear, stigma, and barriers to care.

Health & Justice, 3(1), 1-15.

Feeney, N. (2014). First woman charged under Tennessee’s controversial drugs-during-

pregnancy law. Time.