His bill would also direct the National Institute of Corrections to provide education and technical assistance to state and local correctional facilities to train staff on the risks of placing pregnant women in restrictive housing and restraints. Research on policies targeting pregnant women’s care in these facilities will also be necessary.
The bill would also require basic care, including meals, for pregnant women in federal custody. vitamins; bedding; clothing. Support services. Screening and treatment for dangerous risk factors. And the plan is to deal with serious complications. In most cases, the bill would prohibit federal agencies from placing pregnant women in restrictive housing or restraints.
Kamlager-Dove said she proposed the requirements to the Department of Homeland Security in the new version of the bill after women alleged they were abused and ignored in immigration detention centers while pregnant. DHS denied the allegations.
The bill will now be referred to a House committee, but it does not yet have a Republican co-sponsor and will need enough support to pass. Kamlager-Dub said he asked members of the majority party to sign.
The Bloomberg Law/NBC News investigation also cited state lawmakers seeking to prevent at-risk women from spending their pregnancies in detention.
In Pennsylvania, the investigation prompted the introduction of the Pregnancy and Pretrial Justice Act, which limits cash bail for pregnant pretrial detainees who are not facing the death penalty or life sentence.
State Sen. Amanda Cappelletti (D), the bill’s author, said it would ensure that pregnant women are no longer held in jail without medical care because they don’t have bail.
“Recent news coverage has made it clear how urgently this reform is needed,” Cappelletti told his colleagues earlier this year when introducing the bill. “We know that even short periods of incarceration can put maternal and fetal health at risk. No incarcerated person should be denied access to basic health care during pregnancy.”
Lawmakers in other states are working to raise awareness and improve conditions for pregnant women in prisons. In Virginia, legislation enacted last month makes it easier for pregnant women to be subjected to home electronic surveillance, mandates standards for breastfeeding policies, and requires pregnancy reporting. Later this year, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice will release its first report on maternal health, pregnancy complications and prison mortality rates.
