The article discusses cases where pregnant patients who were given medications during labor tested positive for those same drugs on subsequent drug tests, leading to reports to child welfare authorities and potential removal of children from their parents. The drugs in question include morphine, fentanyl, benzodiazepines, and blood pressure medications routinely prescribed during labor and delivery. Hospital drug testing policies across the country lack safeguards to protect patients from being reported over faulty test results, leading to false positives, errors, and misinterpretation. Despite warnings and studies showing that drug tests are not the best way to identify substance use problems, hospitals continue to conduct universal drug tests on labor and delivery patients without confirming results, potentially causing harm to patients with histories of addiction. The consequences of a faulty drug test can be severe, requiring patients to prove that the positive result was caused by medications given to them in the hospital. The article highlights the case of a young mother who tested positive for morphine in her newborn’s meconium after being administered the drug during labor, leading to an investigation by child welfare authorities despite the hospital records clearly documenting the medication. The lack of oversight in hospital drug testing policies puts vulnerable patients at risk of being wrongly reported to authorities and having their children taken away, highlighting the urgent need for reform in hospital reporting practices.
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