Colorado Revised Statutes Title 27. Behavioral Health § 27-80-116. Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders--legislative declaration--health warning signs--federal funding

(a) Fetal alcohol exposure is the leading known cause of preventable intellectual and developmental disabilities and birth defects in the children of this state;

(b) Individuals with undiagnosed fetal alcohol spectrum disorders suffer substantially from secondary issues such as child abuse and neglect, separation from families, multiple foster placements, depression, aggression, school failure, juvenile detention, and job instability;

(b.5) Compared to individuals diagnosed before age twelve, individuals with undiagnosed FASD are two to four times more likely to suffer from inappropriate sexual behavior; disrupted school experiences; trouble with the law; alcohol and substance problems or disorders; or confinement in a jail, a hospital or treatment facility for persons with behavioral or mental health disorders, or a substance use disorder treatment facility;

(c) These secondary disabilities come at a high cost to individuals, their families, and society;

(d) A survey performed in 2006 by the Colorado pregnancy risk assessment system estimated that eleven and two-tenths percent of women in Colorado said that they drank alcohol during the last three months of their pregnancy; and

(e) The commission should evaluate the current use and distribution of written and electronic informational materials designed to increase awareness of the consequences of drinking alcohol while pregnant and should investigate additional means by which such written and electronic materials might best be used.