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Anne Soleil C. Agasang

Professor Holly Batty

English 101

25 March 2019

Opioid abuse and dependence during pregnancy

Opiate abuse has grown into a critical challenge facing people in the U.S. The rise in the

use of opioids has extended across all races in the country with the white population having the

highest statistics. The growing use of opioids in the U.S. has contributed to a dire community of

users comprising of pregnant women. The growth in use among pregnant women has reached

catastrophic levels resulting in the adoption of various solution by different people to counter the

problem. The essay examines the nature of some of the resolutions adopted, their effectiveness

and impact on pregnant women using opioids in the U.S.

The project initiated by Barbara Harris sought to limit the incidence of pregnancy among

drug users by women with addiction to get IUDs and sterilization (Walters, 2012). The program

presented a solution to the rising cases of children born from drug using mothers resulting in the

birth of unhealthy children with numerous challenges. The plan presented some problems as

paying the women resulted in the success of the program to have a birth control option but also

contributed to continued drug use through the money offered (Walters, 2012).

The project prevention program has been characterized as the methods adopted have been

compared to eugenics. I agree to an extent with the founder as limiting the incidence of children

born by drug-abusing mothers; it would be a better alternative to provide the women with a

different form of contraceptives. I am in favor of the IUDs but disagree with the sterilization

option as the women may later on, become stable and wish to have a child and may lose that
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opportunity. The presented criticism equating the program to eugenics is not the same as the

program seeks to ensure that women using drugs use birth control. In this case, the IUDs provide

a temporary solution while sterilization offers a permanent solution, which is open to choose

from the women using drugs.

In data analysis, the opioid epidemic has developed into a critical challenge facing the US

community. However, the statistics presented concerning users by race and age are baffling.

Maeda et al. (2014) present that the highest number of opioid users among pregnant women

comprise the white ethnic community accounting for 66.6% of the users. Similarly, contrary to

popular belief concerning drug use among teenagers, the highest number of users comprising of

85.9% are women between the ages of 20 and 34 (Maeda et al., 2014). The information is

surprising as it goes against the developed racial and age stereotypes concerning drug use

whereby the highest figures would have been expected from ethnic and racial minority groups in

the nation.

The growing rise in opioid use among pregnant women is attributed to poverty and lack

of the necessary information concerning the birth control among the poor populations. Promoting

community awareness programs in birth control among drug users would be essential as the

program will aid in providing women with birth control on a voluntary basis. The model should

not include any payment to the users but instead, offer them a choice to use birth control. The

solution will cater to users of low economic background. However, the massive cuts on Medicaid

will contribute to the incidence of the problem as more of the users will not have the opportunity

to seek proper treatment in case of pregnancy through prenatal checkups and delivery.

Intervention in the problem may be approached from a preventive and management

perspectives. The preventive approach will involve community outreach programs, which will
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inform the women about the dangers of drug use during pregnancy. The preventive measures

may be integrated into the community to include the young beginning from girls aged ten years

old to the older woman. The management approach may consist of the provision of treatment for

opioid dependence among pregnant women through the administration of methadone

maintenance therapy (Patrick et al., 2015). The upcoming cuts on Medicaid will be detrimental

to the program as they will render the major of women ineligible.

The factual information presented in the podcast and the article stood out as, despite the

emotional anecdote provided, opioid use in pregnancy was a crucial issue in the US population.

The facts identified that weakness, the most affected opportunities and possible solutions that

may be adopted to counter the problem. The factual information concerning the opioid crisis

stood out the most as the figures are staggering. The high rate of usage among pregnant women

emphasizes the prevalence of the issue and the importance of adopting measures to address the

problem. Having the necessary facts and figures is crucial as it paints a clear picture of the

problem and contributes to the development of intervention programs to address the issue.

Therefore, having the facts is critical as it informs the developed solution.

In the past three decades, drug abuse has grown into a critical challenge facing

individuals, families, communities, and nations globally. The growth of opioid use among

pregnant women in the US has developed into a crucial problem affecting the community. The

study established that several measures some extreme and other mild have been adopted to curb

the issue in the society. The research proposed continual community awareness programs on the

importance of birth control to drug users in the community to limit the incidence of pregnancy

while using drugs. Similarly, the free availability of birth control measures would foster adoption

among users.
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Works Cited

Maeda, A., Bateman, B. T., Clancy, C. R., Creanga, A. A.. & Leffert, L. R. (2014). Opioid

Abuse and Dependence during Pregnancy Temporal Trends and Obstetrical Outcomes.

The Journal of the American Society of Anesthesiologists, 121(6), 1158-1165.

Patrick, S. W., Schumacher, R., Bennyworth, B., McAllister, J., & Davis, M. (2015). Neonatal

Abstinence Syndrome and Associated Healthcare Expenditures United States 2000 to

20009. Journal of American Medical Association, 307(18), 650.

Walters, P. (2012). What is there was no Destiny? WNYC Studios. Retrieved October 2018<

https://www.wnycstudios.org/story/251887-what-if-no-destiny>