At a glance
When developing the West Virginia Opioid Response Plan, state officials used the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) data on unintended pregnancy and contraceptive use to help make recommendations to support women with substance abuse disorder.
Expanding reproductive health care services to reduce the incidence of infant drug withdrawal
Problem
Babies born impacted by opioids often experienced drug withdrawals called Neonatal Opioid Withdrawal Syndrome (NOWS).
- Infants born with NOWS may need special medical care and have longer hospital stays.
- Ensuring access to quality, patient-centered contraceptive services is a strategy to reduce the incidence of NOWS.
PRAMS data to action
In 2017, the West Virginia Division of Perinatal and Women’s Health used PRAMS data on unintended pregnancy and contraceptive use to help the West Virginia Opioid Response Plan recommend ways to reduce NOWS rates.
- PRAMS data from 2015 indicated that over 40% of pregnancies resulting in a live birth in West Virginia were unintended.
- Among women who reported their pregnancy was unintended, more than half were not using any contraceptive methods when they got pregnant.
- Using these findings from PRAMS data, the West Virginia Opioid Response Plan included recommendations to expand access to contraceptive services.
- These services included voluntary, long-acting, reversible contraception, and other contraceptive services for women with a substance use disorder.
Results
The West Virginia 2020–2022 Substance Use Response Plan highlighted several related successes.
- Access to quality family planning was provided in 9 addiction facilities known as harm reduction sites.
- Harm reduction sites hired additional clinicians and purchased contraceptives.
- By the end of 2018, data showed an increase in using contraception services and counseling among women at harm reduction sites.