Prenatal opioid exposure, neonatal abstinence syndrome diagnosis, and child welfare involvement.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS), or withdrawal from prenatal opioid exposure at birth, can trigger a referral to child protective services (CPS). However, there is some evidence of selection into NAS diagnosis because NAS screening is not universal. Such referrals may protect the infant, help connect the mother to services, or cause harm.

Objective

To study the relation between prenatal opioid exposure, NAS diagnosis, and CPS involvement during the (early) neonatal period.

Participants and setting

We analyzed data (N = 236,868 Medicaid-covered live births) from the Wisconsin Administrative Data Core using linked birth records, Medicaid claims, CPS records, and benefit/earnings data from 2010 to 2018.

Methods

We identified opioid exposure using Med

SUBMITTER: Durrance CP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11867835 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature