Loopholes in medical secrecy laws – often justified by drug enforcement – mean hospitals have discretion share records without the patient’s consent. Only 19 states ban unsecured search prescription drug monitoring databases, and at the federal level, the Drug Enforcement Administration states that they can search these databases no command in any state. Nearly half of the states have defined drug use during pregnancy as child abuse, which leads to mandatory reporting to child welfare agencies and also potential prosecution. Criminal. It’s not too difficult to see how the same data could be used to target women who are seeking abortions or the doctors who help care for them.
Fearful of legal action, some doctors have taken extreme measures to protect themselves from abortion prosecutions, such as ending women’s prescriptions for immune disorders. , methotrexate, because if they get pregnant, it can cause a miscarriage. Texas Medical Association recently asked state regulators must act, saying some hospitals are turning away patients with pregnancy complications for fear of violating the state’s abortion ban. Women are miscarriage must wait until they are bleeding heavily before getting help. As with the drug war, fear of the law is causing doctors to prioritize their own risks over the health of their patients.
However, the Supreme Court offers a glimmer of hope in the fight against the rise in medical criminalization. In a little-noticed 9-to-zero decision, Ruan sues the United States, which came just days after Roe was overturned, it decision to draw a line in the war on drugs. Several courts have previously ruled that doctors accused of operating a “drug factory” can be convicted simply for prescribing more than prosecutors consider acceptable. In contrast, others have ruled that drug trafficking should have a criminal purpose and that doctors should have the right to protect themselves when practicing in good faith.
The Supreme Court sided with the physicians. Prescribing outside the mainstream still carries the risk of negligence, but if there is no indication of a crime such as selling specific drugs for a specific amount, doctors cannot be found guilty of trafficking. , the court ruled. It is not clear why this claim of purpose is also not relevant to abortion cases.
But it’s clear that prosecuting doctors hasn’t ended the drug overdose crisis. Instead, it frightens many people into using defensive drugs and drives addicts and even some painful patients to much more dangerous street drugs. Last year, the United States had the highest drug overdose death rate ever, with the majority of deaths attributed to opioids.
As with the drug war, criminalizing abortion will increase harm, while not preventing the behavior it is intended to reduce.
