GOP Sponsored Bill Banning Pregnant And Breastfeeding Mothers Access To Medical Marijuana Approved In SD House

South Dakota House passed a bill (House Bill 1053) Wednesday seeking to ban pregnant and breastfeeding women from accessing medical marijuana.

The legislation, introduced by Representative Fred Deutsch (R) was approved in a 68 to 8 vote and is now heading to the Senate. The title of the bill: “an Act to prohibit the issuance of a written certification to a pregnant woman or breastfeeding mother for purposes of medical cannabis use.”

“States are now beginning to have exclusions to provisions in law that include the pregnancy consideration because marijuana has some adverse effects on the developing baby," said Deutsch, reported by SDPB radio. 

The bill was co-sponsored by Republican representatives Rocky Blare, Mary J. Fitzgerald, Kevin D. Jensen, Karla J. Lems, John Mills, Scott Moore, Tina L. Mulally, Ernie Otten, Carl E. Perry, Neal Pinnow, Tony Randolph, and Republican senators Al Novstrup, Julie Frye-Mueller, Jim Stalzer, and John Wiik.

Some Democrats were against the proposition, such as Rep. Erin Healy (D) who raised concerns that the proposed law enables the government to get too involved in personal healthcare issues.

“It's not that I don’t believe that women should be ingesting or utilizing marijuana while they're pregnant, I don’t think they should be," Healy said. "But I do believe that the government should not be limiting the scope of practice for physicians and for health care providers.” 

Many studies indicate that marijuana use during pregnancy may not be good for a child. For example, a study published in JAMA Pediatrics last year said children whose mothers used marijuana after the fifth or sixth week following conception are in danger of developing mental health problems in early youth. 

The study looked at data from over 10,000 children aged 11 and 12 who were exposed to marijuana in utero. The alarming results suggested that those children were more prone to develop disorders such as ADHD, aggressive behavior, conduct disorder, and rule-breaking behavior.

While this may be true, or may just show that there’s a connection between the two and not direct causation, it is still a matter of choosing the best option for a mother and a child in cases when a mother requires medication. This dilemma between pregnant women who need medical cannabis and child protective services still exists in many states.

Similar Controversies

However, no state so far has enacted this type of law, prohibiting doctors from prescribing medical marijuana to pregnant or breastfeeding women.

Last September, Oklahoma made headlines for charging women with child neglect felonies for consuming cannabis while pregnant.

Just a couple of weeks ago The Arizona Supreme Court ordered the removal of a woman's name from the state's child abuse registry after it became public that she had consumed medicinal cannabis during her pregnancy.

Alabama got close to South Dakota’s proposed measures approving a controversial bill last April, introduced by State Sen. Larry Stutts (R), which requires that all women between the ages of 13 and 50 prove that they are not pregnant and not breastfeeding to buy medical cannabis.

So, what do you think will South Dakota’s Senate approve the new house bill? It looks like anything is possible in this day and age. 

Photo: Benzinga Edit with images by Nataliya Vaitkevich and Анастасия Войтко on Pexels.