Nonprofit urges treatment-first approach for pregnant women with substance use

Christina Dent, founder and vice president of mission at End It For Good, told the committee that punitive policies toward pregnant women who use drugs worsen outcomes for mothers and infants.

"When mothers are pregnant, their babies are with them and in them, and the best thing we can do for those babies is to care for their moms and their moms' health care," Dent said, arguing that fear of criminal justice involvement and custody loss deters pregnant women from seeking prenatal care and addiction treatment.

Dent cited research tying adverse childhood experiences to higher risk for later addiction and described program elements she said reduce fear and increase access: voluntary "safe harbors," increased treatment options that keep mothers with their babies, family sober-living supports, and community-based outreach.

She told a personal story about a mother who is 10 years sober and credited programs that allowed mother-and-baby treatment placements. Dent said Mississippi currently has only two treatment centers that allow mothers and babies to stay together and that one lost federal funding last year.

During questions, committee members asked about foster-care timelines and program qualifications; Dent described a roughly one-year foster licensing experience in 2014 and urged better communication between agencies and foster families as a priority.

Dent asked legislators to use opioid-settlement funds and to avoid punitive approaches that research finds lead to worse outcomes for both mothers and infants.