A new federal law signed by President Obama will help health care providers diagnose and treat infants with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS).
The Protecting Our Infants Act of 2015 gives health care providers the tools they need to properly deal with NAS, giving babies born with an opiate dependence a fighting chance.
“Each year, thousands of babies are born addicted to drugs,” said U.S. Rep. Steve Stivers, (R-OH), who spoke in favor of passing the bill. “It is yet another tragic symptom of the opiates abuse crisis in Ohio and around the country. This new law makes a strong bipartisan statement about our commitment to protecting these children while we work to support families struggling with addiction.”
The new bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services to not only develop a series of best practices for treating NAS, but also charges them with designating an agency to collect data on the condition.
According to recent data, babies are being born with NAS at an increasing rate, but armed with the new data health care providers will hope to more effectively treat babies suffering from withdrawal.
