Oklahoma woman charged with child neglect for consuming cannabis while pregnant

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Oklahoma woman charged with child neglect for consuming cannabis while pregnant

Since 2019, at least 26 women in Oklahoma have been charged with child neglect felonies for consuming cannabis while pregnant, according to The Frontier. The sentence for life in prison can be life in prison, though the previous offenders who pleaded guilty were given probation.

At least eight of the 26 women were medical marijuana license holders, meaning they were allowed to legally buy and use cannabis, having a doctor's recommendation. The problem boils down to whether medical marijuana can be treated as an illegal drug, because if it can, the law is clear that pregnant women can be charged with child neglect for consuming illegal drugs while pregnant. Even after giving birth to healthy babies, Oklahomans have been prosecuted.

Wait a second, is medical marijuana legal in Oklahoma for registered patients?

That is right, those with a license from the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority are allowed to buy and consume marijuana, and there are no rules prohibiting pregnant women from using cannabis or possessing a license. The doctors are not obligated to determine if a patient is pregnant or planning a pregnancy before they provide them with a medical marijuana license, according to state law.

Medical marijuana products in the state have warnings against use during pregnancy, similar to those on cigarette packs.

Most medical professionals agree on the importance of not using marijuana, cigarettes, alcohol, and other drugs during pregnancy.

Brian Hermanson, one of the two prosecutors in Oklahoma who have brought charges against pregnant women, believes that this is a felony.

If they make bad decisions about using drugs while they are pregnant, they're probably going to make other bad decisions when raising the child, he said last November.

On the other hand, Ryan Kiesel, a civil rights attorney and former Oklahoma lawmaker, thinks these prosecutions are incompatible with state law. Kiesel said that the women are protected under the law as medical marijuana patients. You are under the care of a doctor if you have a medical marijuana license. Over time, the number of women in the U.S. who are pregnant has increased. The figure went from 6% to 12% between 2002 and 2017 as per data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health.

The numbers don't look great. Since the state legalized medical marijuana in 2018, the number of state newborns who tested positive for cannabis increased by more than 160%.

What are the risks of consuming cannabis while pregnant?

There are not enough relevant scientific studies on this topic, as marijuana couldn't be researched for a long time because of its status as a Schedule 1 substance.

More and more new studies show that there are negative effects for children whose mothers consumed cannabis while pregnant, it is hard to verify that the consequences came only from cannabis use. Dr. Mishka Terplan, who has researched substance use in pregnancy and helped develop the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologist guidance on addiction, says the impact of marijuana exposure can be very hard to separate from tobacco use, stress, and any other health and environmental factors.

When pregnant, women should not take any legal drugs, like painkillers or alcohol, right? It is not unusual to see women smoking a cigarette with a big bump, even though the negative effects of cigarette smoke to unborn children has been known for a long time. No one is prosecuting pregnant women who smoke or drink. Is it a bit hypocritical, if child care is the main concern in these prosecutions?