Bill on ‘meth moms’ debated

With as many as 60 babies a year born to addicted mothers in Kootenai County, officials here are conflicted over an Idaho bill that proposes to jail pregnant women who use methamphetamine and other drugs.

Debate about the bill that narrowly passed the Idaho Senate swirled Wednesday in local hospitals, treatment centers and agencies that care for vulnerable children.

Some advocates said making illegal drug use during pregnancy a felony would protect children – and provide the necessary hammer to get mothers to stop using.

“My experience has been that unless you’re under duress you won’t change. I’m saying I think they benefit from the duress,” said Randy Gieb, local program manager for the state’s Child Protection Services. “I don’t want them to go to jail. I want them to be scared as hell about going to jail.”

Others said state efforts should address the complex issues surrounding drug abuse.

“If we can influence people to seek care as an alternative, if it encourages society to deal with the underlying problems, then I think it would be a good thing,” said Ruth Willford, clinical coordinator in the Kootenai Medical Center birthing center.

“If it’s purely punitive, I don’t see any productive outcome from that.”

The bill passed the Senate on Tuesday on an 18-16 vote and awaits House consideration. It creates a felony punishable by up to five years in prison or a $50,000 fine. It also instructs judges to consider ordering substance abuse treatment or drug court enrollment.

If approved, the legislation would affect between 30 and 60 pregnant drug users a year who deliver babies at the Coeur d’Alene hospital, local and state officials estimated. Three or four women a month test positive for illegal substance use, said Willford, a veteran obstetrical nurse.

Twice that number likely use substances during pregnancy, based on national statistics, said Tom Shanahan, spokesman for the state Health and Welfare Department.

Questions about efficacy aside, the bill fails to address practical concerns, Kootenai County Prosecutor Bill Douglas said.

He said he opposed the proposed law because it would place pregnant women in already overcrowded jails and because it would force counties to pay the costs of delivery and post-partum care if women couldn’t make bail.

“I am all for drug-free babies and drug-free pregnancies,” Douglas said. “But we’re talking about incarcerating a pregnant woman or a new mother. Is that the function of the criminal justice system?”

Douglas also worried the law would require doctors and other health care providers to violate patient confidentiality.