A baby boy born at Reading Hospital in 2017 came into the world, the fourth child of a woman struggling with addiction to methamphetamine and heroin.

The little one had a tough road ahead, but was blessed with a dedicated hospital staff and loving adoptive parents.

The hospital staff held and soothed him as he was weaned from the drugs passed to him by his mother. Once home, his adoptive parents, Millicent M. and Steven C. Himmelreich, continued the love and patience he needed to thrive.

Their tiny child was born with the muscle tightness common to babies born in drug withdrawal, known as neonatal abstinence syndrome.

“We had to spend weeks massaging him and help him loosen all his muscles,” Millicent says.

The Himmelreichs, formerly of Lehighton, picked up the baby at the hospital when he was 2 weeks old.

Now 20 months old, their son is happy and healthy. The couple is fostering and planning to adopt his half brother, who is 4 months old.

He, too, was born in drug withdrawal, struggling to overcome the methadone, methamphetamine, amphetamines and alcohol in his system.

“He has gone blue eight or nine times from being upset and not breathing,” she says.

“We’re thankful both boys, neither has had major issues,” Millicent says.

The couple harbors no ill will against the boys’ mother, who lacks family support and has had a difficult life.

“All we can do is love them and be kind to her,” Millicent says.

She sends the boys’ mother photos and updates.

“The boys are together and they’re happy,” she says. “And we are grateful.”

Tiny babies, big problems

The Himmelreich’s toddler son was among 1,912 newborns in Pennsylvania that were hospitalized in 2017 for drug withdrawal, known as neonatal abstinence syndrome.

An additional 3,289 newborns showed evidence of maternal drug use, but were not born dependent, according to the PA Health Care Cost Containment Council.

Those numbers are just babies born to mothers on Medicaid.

The tsunami of opioid addiction in the United States hasn’t spared pregnant women, who pass the substances to their developing babies.

The number of drug-dependent newborns is soaring.

The rate of neonatal abstinence syndrome in newborns increased 1,096 percent between 2000-01 and 2016-17.

That means the rate went from 1.2 per thousand newborn hospital stays to 15 per thousand, according to the Cost Containment Council.

The stays were highest among white, non-Hispanic babies. They had a rate of 19.5 per thousand. The rate among black, non-hispanic newborns was 7.2.

Newborns with neonatal abstinence syndrome are much more likely to be premature, have low birth weights, excessive crying, tremors, have difficulty feeding, and have problems breathing.

According to a study published in the medical journal Pediatrics, they also tend to have smaller heads, raising concerns about brain growth and development.

Compounding the human misery is the cost: neonatal abstinence syndrome-related stays added an estimated $14.1 million in hospital payments in 2017, according to the council.

Reaching out to help

Dr. Amanda Flicker, chief of obstetrics at Lehigh Valley Health Network, said the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, recommends screening all pregnant women for substance abuse using a validated questionnaire.

“Biologic testing, such as urine testing, can be used for affirmation, but it is only a snapshot in time and does not reflect severity of use,” she said.

But some addicted pregnant women, fearful of arrest or having their children taken away, avoid medical checkups.

In Pennsylvania, the Supreme Court after months of consideration on Dec. 28 ruled that pregnant woman who use controlled substance and whose newborns are born with neonatal abstinence syndrome cannot be charged with child abuse. The state’s child protection law doesn’t apply to fetuses, the court ruled.

The court heard arguments in September in the case, which concerns a woman who gave birth in January 2017 in Williamsport. The woman tested positive for a number of drugs, including opioids. Her newborn spent 19 days in the hospital due to neonatal abstinence syndrome.

The baby was removed from her care by Clinton County Children and Youth Services, which cited the state’s Child Protective Services Law to explain its action.

The law defines child abuse as anything that “intentionally, knowingly or recklessly” either injures a child or increases the likelihood of harm.

Under that law, hospitals are required to alert child protective services of newborns who are born with neonatal abstinence syndrome or who have drugs in their systems.

Changes in Pennsylvania law as of July 2015 require health care providers involved in the delivery of a newborn or the care of baby under a year old to report illegal substance abuse by the child’s mother; withdrawal symptoms resulting from prenatal drug exposure (unless the child’s mother, during the pregnancy, was under the care of a prescribing medical professional and/or in compliance with the directions for the administration of a prescription drug as directed by the prescribing medical professional); or a fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.

Medical experts were watching the case closely, concerned that a ruling against the mother will deter other pregnant and addicted women from seeking help.

“ACOG and the American Society of Addiction Medicine strongly support a nonpunitive approach to the care, treatment and management of pregnant women with substance abuse disorder, recognizing it as a medical disorder and avoiding deterrence from seeking care,” Flicker said.

“However, we consider the safety of the mother and newborn of paramount importance, and we use a team approach of clinicians, care managers, and (child protective services) to make appropriate referrals and placement,” she said.

At a glance: Addicted babies

The rate of neonatal abstinence syndrome in newborns increased 1,096 percent between 2000-01 and 2016-17.

The Pennsylvania Cost Containment Council tracked the rate of hospital stays for infants who are born with drugs in their systems.

Green County, in southwestern Pennsylvania, topped the list with a rate of 76 per thousand births. The lowest was Tioga County, with a rate of 3.2 per thousand.

Here are the rates per thousand babies in our area.

• Monroe County: 19.4.

• Carbon County: 19

• Schuylkill County: 13.6

• Northampton County: 8.4

• Lehigh County: 4.6