Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2017 Jul;21(7):1479-1487.
doi: 10.1007/s10995-017-2268-1.

Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome: Trend and Expenditure in Louisiana Medicaid, 2003-2013

Ekwutosi M Okoroh  1 , Rebekah E Gee  2   3 , Baogong Jiang  2 , Melissa B McNeil  4 , Beverly A Hardy-Decuir  2 , Amy L Zapata  4
Affiliations

Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome: Trend and Expenditure in Louisiana Medicaid, 2003-2013

Ekwutosi M Okoroh et al. Matern Child Health J. 2017 Jul.

Abstract

Objectives Determine trends in incidence and expenditure for perinatal drug exposure and neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) among Louisiana's Medicaid population. We also describe the maternal characteristics of NAS affected infants. Methods Retrospective cohort analysis using linked Medicaid and vital records data from 2003 to 2013. Conducted incidence and cost trends for drug exposed infants with and without NAS. Also performed comparison statistics among drug exposed infants with and without NAS and those not drug exposed. Results As rate of perinatal drug exposure increased, NAS rate per 1000 live Medicaid births also increased, from 2.1 (2003) to 3.6 (2007) to 8.0 (2013) (P for trend <0.0001). Total medical cost paid by Medicaid also increased from $1.3 million to $3.6 million to $8.7 million (P for trend <0.0001). Compared with drug exposed infants without NAS and those not drug exposed, infants with NAS were more likely to be white, have feeding difficulties, respiratory distress syndrome, sepsis, and seizures, all of which had an association at P < 0.0001. Over one-third (33.2%) of the mothers of infants with NAS had an opioid dependency in combination with a mental illness; with depression being most common. Conclusions for Practice Over an 11-year period, NAS rate among Louisiana's Medicaid infants quadrupled and the cost for caring for the affected infants increased six-fold. Medicaid, as the predominant payer for pregnant women and children affected by substance use disorders, must play a more active role in expanding access to comprehensive substance abuse treatment programs.

Keywords: Expenditure; Mental illness; Neonatal abstinence syndrome; Prenatal drug exposure; Treatment programs.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Pediatrics. 2009 Apr;123(4):e614-21 - PubMed
    1. J Addict Med. 2015 May-Jun;9(3):222-5 - PubMed
    1. JAMA. 2010 Sep 1;304(9):992-1000 - PubMed
    1. BMJ. 2015 May 14;350:h2102 - PubMed
    1. Harm Reduct J. 2012 Mar 19;9:14 - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources