UMass Law professor and alumnus propose prenatal opioid screenings for expectant mothers
Article will run in the Summer 2017 issue of the Harvard Journal on Legislation
In an article that will run in the Summer 2017 issue of the Harvard Journal on
Legislation . University of Massachusetts School of Law Professor Jeremiah Ho and
alumnus Alexander Rovzar (UMass Law ’16) propose a bold policy that would promote
voluntary prenatal opioid screenings for expectant mothers.
The article, “Preventing Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome within the Opioid Crisis: A
Uniform Facilitative Policy,” examines the rise of NAS among pregnant women affected
by the nation’s opioid epidemic. NAS is a cluster of health complications that can
occur in newborns who have been exposed to addictive opiates while in their mothers’
wombs.
While praising the current efforts of the Governor Baker and the Legislature to
address the opioid crisis, Ho and Rovzar argue that an even more proactive and
uniform policy aimed at reducing the number of drug-dependent newborns is needed.
“The opioid epidemic requires swift, assertive and proactive response by the
Legislature in light of the epidemic’s severity,” Ho said.
The proposed screening would be voluntary and begin at the patient’s first prenatal
visit. The process would be used only for medical purposes and protected from law
enforcement for the patient’s confidentiality. The protocol would be adopted as a
statewide standard to identify NAS before women give birth.
In addition to the devastating effects on infants born with the syndrome and an
average cost per treatment center stay of $93,400, NAS presents a burden to state
taxpayers specifically in the southern New England states where the opioid epidemic
has hit particularly hard.
The proposal was inspired by the UMass Law Review ’s symposium in Spring 2016, which
focused on the opioid epidemic. “In our examination of NAS, we wanted to analyze the
problem but also propose a proactive solution that can be reviewed by state
legislators and implemented across Massachusetts,” said Rovzar, the former
Editor-in-Chief of the UMass Law Review .
“UMass Law is the Commonwealth’s law school and is dedicated to serving the public
interest, through the work of faculty and students,” said UMass Law Dean Eric
Mitnick. “This bold proposal, based on sound research, demonstrates our focus on
public service and justice.”
The article will be published in the Harvard Journal on Legislation in the Summer
2017 issue, and is currently available online at
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2842061 .
More about UMass Law
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school and is dedicated to the practice of law in the public interest. The
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nearly 80,000 hours of service to the community. It’s Justice Bridge legal practice
incubator program, based in Boston and New Bedford, is providing affordable civil
legal services to thousands of people who otherwise would be going to court without
legal representation.