Think Out Loud

Flawed drug tests lead to thousands of cases of police involvement in new births in Oregon and across the US

By Rolando Hernandez (OPB)
Feb. 26, 2026 5:52 p.m.

Broadcast: Thursday, Feb. 26

There were more than 70,000 cases of alleged drug use during pregnancy sent to law enforcement officials across 21 states, including Oregon, over six years. As reported in The Marshall Project, these cases involved unreliable drug tests that show inaccurate results, are difficult to read or are simply wrong. In Oregon, and in 12 other states, welfare agencies automatically report any positive test result to authorities. Shoshana Walter is a staff writer for The Marshall Project and reported on this trend with Jill Castellano. Walter joins us to share more on these tests.

“Think Out Loud®” broadcasts live at noon every day and rebroadcasts at 8 p.m.

THANKS TO OUR SPONSOR:

If you’d like to comment on any of the topics in this show or suggest a topic of your own, please get in touch with us on Facebook, send an email to thinkoutloud@opb.org, or you can leave a voicemail for us at 503-293-1983.

THANKS TO OUR SPONSOR:
THANKS TO OUR SPONSOR:

THANKS TO OUR SPONSOR: