News Report | February 10, 2019
Higher Rates Of Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome Found In Counties With High Unemployment & In Counties With Shortages Of Mental Health Professionals
Counties with higher than average long-term unemployment rates and counties with a shortage of mental health professionals both had higher rates of neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS). NAS is a group of conditions that occur when a baby withdraws from drugs they were exposed to in the womb. In counties with high long-term unemployment, the incidence of NAS was 1.11, compared to counties with lower long-term unemployment rates. In counties designated as a mental health professional shortage area, the incidence of NAS was 1.17 compared to counties not designated as a mental health shortage area.
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