In Illinois, is it legal for a doctor or hospital to give a drug test for marijuana to a pregnant woman even without her consent?
Serious replies only. I don't want to hear any rants about the issue. I want to know the law.
2007-10-23 14:31:35 · 22 answers · asked by Country Bumkin 2 in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
I know in most places it's SOP to give expectant mothers a drug test.
2007-10-23 14:35:00 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 2⤋
Yes and no. The state of Illinois has a funning law regarding this. If you are brought to the hospital for a medical reason and an unknown problem or cause of the medical condition the doctor can ask for a set of Chem 7,21 or other standard lab tests to be run. These lab tests will show if chemicals are present in the blood system to help him in making a determination for treatment. However these test result can not be used as evidence againest you in a court of law and carry the same doctor patient confidentiality as if you are in the doctors office.
However, if you are pregnant and the levels of drugs in you system are so high that they have cause death or permanat damage to a unborn child then the doctor is obligated by law to contact the local police and file a report.
This report is then given to the County attorney for review in order to see wether this warrants charges to be filed.
If your sytem only showed a trace or occasional use of Maijuana then you don't have anything to worry about.
If however you have large quantaties of heroin, cocaine or other know street drug know to cause fetal birth defects then you might be facing charges depending on the outcome of the infact at birth.
You must remember that treatment to a individual is different than the treatment of a pregnant women, becuase Illinois deferenciates this as two people even if the baby is still within the abortion limits.
I hope this has helped you, and good Luck!
2007-10-23 14:45:32 · answer #2 · answered by Randy W 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
In 2001, the United States Supreme Court ruled that a pregnant woman cannot be tested for drugs for the purposes of turning that information over to police authorities without a warrant or her consent.
However, if you show up at a hospital for treatment, and consent to that treatment, and the reason for your illness or symptoms may be the use of drugs.. you are consenting to that treatment... if you are pregnant that information may be turned over to the Department of Human Services in Illinois and they could take action to prevent you from hurting your unborn child.
2007-10-23 14:56:20 · answer #3 · answered by MARSHA G 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A doctor does not have the authority to take blood or urine from you for the purposes of a drug test without a court order. For the purpose of testing for marijuana I can think of no medical emergency off the top of my head that would bypass this requirement. Call a lawyer.
2007-10-23 16:36:12 · answer #4 · answered by Damien T 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Honestly i can't give you an exact considering im in california when i was asked i told them the truth that i had smoked before i was pregnant but i stopped as soon as i found out i was and they just checked my urine to see if i was telling the truth or not but usually they'll try to give the mother advice to quit, send them to couseling and such. What i do know is that they're not going to just jump and call CPS, this is because they don't want the mother and child to be seperated as most doctors agree that it's crucial for them to bond, and they don't want the mothers not to get prenatal attention because they think they'll get their baby taken away. and i was told by my doc that as long as the person is not a harm to themselves or the child, then everything should be okay, but that you have to be honest. but i would assume that if the expectant mother continuosly test postive for THC then they would test the baby once they're born and so on... hope this helps
2016-04-10 01:03:10 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I heard about a woman who was charged with child endangerment for testing positive for cocaine when she was giving birth to her baby. I do not believe a woman is going to give someone consent to test for drugs if she knows she is on drugs so the test was probably done in a legal way somehow, with consent or without.
2007-10-23 14:36:35 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
I'm not sure, but I think that if the doctor has a legitimate fear for the life of the infant and is to convince the pregnant woman to seek help, then they may be able to test for it. As to the extent on which they can act on it? I really don't know.
2007-10-23 14:35:41 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Yep, we perform drug tests on anyone we suspect might have used them. When you signed the consent for treatment you agreed to it. A doctor doesn't know what course to take to treat you without knowing all of the facts.
2007-10-23 14:37:24 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 1⤋
If it is not the law it should be, because it can be considered child endangerment if a woman is using while pregnant. After all they can test for HIV with or without consent.
2007-10-23 14:35:22 · answer #9 · answered by julvrug 7 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Your best bet is to do a google search for the medical board website for your state.........on there it should list certain things that doctors are allowed to do in your state or not (all states vary in rules) and if your answer is not listed there you can probably send the medical board and email and they can direct you to the right answer!
Good Luck!
2007-10-23 14:36:18 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋