News
WV Hospitals See Increase In Drug-Addicted Babies
By: Associated Press
Posted on:
Some hospitals in West Virginia are seeing an increase in the number of babies born with drug addictions.
At Cabell Huntington Hospital, perinatal center director Dr. David Chaffin tells the Charleston Daily Mail that one of 13 babies born are addicted to drugs.
Neonatologist Dr. Stefan Maxwell says the rate is about the same at Charleston Area Medical Center.
Thomas Memorial Hospital in Charleston also is seeing an increase. On one recent weekend, eight of 12 babies born were addicted to drugs.
Hospital officials say drug-addicted babies need complex care but they don't necessarily need to be in a neonatal intensive care unit or nursery.
To combat overcrowding, Cabell Huntington plans to partner with Lily's Place, a pediatric addiction recovery center that's expected to open later this year.