Over Six Years, More Than 70,000 Pregnancy Substance Use Cases Were Referred To Law Enforcement In 21 States

Over six years, child welfare agencies in 21 states shared allegations of substance use during pregnancy with law enforcement more than 70,000 times, according to research by The Marshall Project. More than half of the referrals came from Georgia, Oklahoma, and Minnesota. The allegations were based on drug testing conducted at childbirth between federal fiscal years 2018 and 2023.

Thirteen of the 21 states each referred more than 1,000 cases to law enforcement:

Georgia: 17,987 referrals, at a rate of 1 in 42 births over six years

Oklahoma: 12,151 referrals, at a rate of 1 in . . .