[MMA News Now, July 29, 2010] Beginning August 1, 2010, Minnesota health care and social services professionals who deliver prenatal care will no longer be required to report prenatal alcohol and marijuana use to local welfare agencies.

In 1989, a state law was passed mandating that health care providers report the use of cocaine, heroin, or methamphetamines by a pregnant woman to local welfare agencies. In 2007, marijuana and the habitual or excessive use of alcohol were added to the list of drugs that triggered mandatory reporting. Physicians are still required to report use of the harder narcotics listed in the act.  

This change comes in response to a number of Twin Cities’ focus groups which discovered that many pregnant women using drugs or alcohol delayed prenatal visits out of a fear that they would lose custody of their children. The law is intended to provide a safe environment in which pregnant women can disclose and address alcohol or marijuana use. The MMA supported the legislation during the 2010 session.

A trusted physician can play a critical role in this process and providers are being encouraged to engage in brief interventions for alcohol or drug use. Such interventions can be as simple as an expression of concern, a description of risks, or advice against using drugs and alcohol.

If greater levels of intervention are desired, physicians can visit the CDC or the NIAAA for guidance on screening and brief intervention tactics. There are also online training options available.