Women’s CARE (Childbirth Alternatives, Resources, & Education) Act
Why do we need the Women’s CARE Act?
GENERAL
• There is an increasing female population in prisons and jails.
• While no system is perfect in responding to the medical conditions of pregnancy, correctional facilities and county jails are “particularly ill-equipped” to do so.
• Alternatives to sentencing including stay of criminal proceedings of pregnant and/or postpartum women to reduce the likelihood of negative health and social outcomes for the newborn, women, and community.
• Timely attention to medical conditions and mental health during the perinatal period can improve health and welfare for newborn, women, and the family unit.
• Criminal proceedings are not responsive to the timeline or complexity of the perinatal period - Pregnancy is a time-sensitive process that has many potential outcomes and variations. Pregnant women may also experience sudden harmful medical conditions, such as preeclampsia or placental abruption, or develop complex medical conditions that result in the early loss, of a pregnancy or threaten the life of the pregnant woman, such as an ectopic pregnancy. At any stage of the perinatal period, situations can occur that cause long-term physical and mental health trauma for the pregnant woman.
• The end of the pregnancy does not immediately terminate the effects of the pregnancy on the woman, who can experience physical, emotional, and mental symptoms for up to 12 months or more.
• A postpartum woman that does not breastfeed is subject to increased ovarian cancer, premenopausal cancer, and type 2 diabetes.
• A newborn that is not breastfed is at higher risk for childhood obesity, asthma, type 1 or 2 diabetes, leukemia, or SIDS.
• A newborn who is separated from any parent may experience stress hormones, which may lead to difficulty sleeping, developmental regression, heart disease, hypertension, obesity, diabetes or decreased life span.
• A newborn who is separated from a parent may also experience permanent architectural changes in the brain, including a lower intelligence quotient or an increased likelihood of depression, suicidal ideation, or addiction to alcohol or gambling.
SAFETY (GA)
• Incarcerated women pregnancies rank highest in infant mortality.
• Over half of incarcerated pregnant women have tested positive for COVID.
• Pregnant women who contract COVID risk the child's health including adverse outcomes.
• According to Grady News, Georgia has the highest ranking maternal mortality rate in the United States.
• According to the CDC, “pregnant Georgians were two times more likely to die during their pregnancy and up to one year postpartum than the average American.”
ACCOUNTABILITY & LIABILITY
• Despite the passing of HB 345, incarcerated pregnant women are still routinely being shackled and placed in solitary confinement, breaking the law and risking the lives of unborn babies.
• To date we have no data of incarcerated women including the number of pregnant women being detained in correctional facilities throughout GA which makes it impossible to implement HB345.
• Correctional facilities are not in compliance with CDC, DPH, ACOG, and NCCHC
• Penal institutions are not equipped to provide adequate prenatal, postpartum, or high risk pregnancy care. Most don't have contracts with an obstetrician or can provide prenatal vitamins.
• Correctional facilities do not provide recommended meals of adequate nutritional value but instead foods with high sodium and sugar.
• Correctional officers are not trained to recognize when a woman is in labor.
• Facilities are understaffed.
How does the Women’s CARE Act benefit the state?
• Eliminates millions of dollars spent monthly to provide housing, doctor visits for prenatal and postpartum care, specialist for high risk care, nutritional supplements, transportation costs to hospital and doctors visits, additional staff for hospital and transportation, child placement, and additional costs for supplies to comply with COVID-19 recommendations.
• Eliminates the accountability for COVID-19 precautions for pregnant women, maintaining an OB contract to provide perinatal care, ‘special diets,’ needed for nutritional care, as well as additional female staff needed to transport and be present for the hospitalization of the pregnant women.
• Eliminates the liability of facilities not complying with GA law of HB345, pregnant women contracting COVID-19, not providing adequate perinatal care and reproductive education, women delivering in cells alone, life threatening infections, nonconsensual procedures, and maternal-infant mortality.
How does the Women’s CARE Act help babies?
• The postpartum period is an essential time for the newborn to develop healthy physiologic responses.
• Newborn babies will be allowed minimal critical time with the mother for family bonding/attachment, provide breastfeeding, and improve overall health.
• Family bonding with the newborn can improve conditions for other children in the same family unit.
• Bonding between a newborn and parent prevents neglect, long-term health risks that are increased by separating the newborn from the parent.
How does the Women’s CARE Act help women?
• Women have autonomy (are accountable and liable) for their own perinatal and high-risk care to ensure healthy deliveries.
• Women have autonomy (are accountable and liable) to provide their own nutritional needs to support their pregnancy.
• Women have access to receive educational programming and resources to promote healthy parenting.
• Women have autonomy (are accountable and liable) for proper postpartum care to ensure they’re healthy prior to serving their sentence.
• Women will have sufficient time and opportunity to make placement arrangements.
• Women will have reduced anxiety with knowledge of placement of their babies and loss of parental rights.
• There is an increasing female population in prisons and jails.
• While no system is perfect in responding to the medical conditions of pregnancy, correctional facilities and county jails are “particularly ill-equipped” to do so.
• Alternatives to sentencing including stay of criminal proceedings of pregnant and/or postpartum women to reduce the likelihood of negative health and social outcomes for the newborn, women, and community.
• Timely attention to medical conditions and mental health during the perinatal period can improve health and welfare for newborn, women, and the family unit.
• Criminal proceedings are not responsive to the timeline or complexity of the perinatal period - Pregnancy is a time-sensitive process that has many potential outcomes and variations. Pregnant women may also experience sudden harmful medical conditions, such as preeclampsia or placental abruption, or develop complex medical conditions that result in the early loss, of a pregnancy or threaten the life of the pregnant woman, such as an ectopic pregnancy. At any stage of the perinatal period, situations can occur that cause long-term physical and mental health trauma for the pregnant woman.
• The end of the pregnancy does not immediately terminate the effects of the pregnancy on the woman, who can experience physical, emotional, and mental symptoms for up to 12 months or more.
• A postpartum woman that does not breastfeed is subject to increased ovarian cancer, premenopausal cancer, and type 2 diabetes.
• A newborn that is not breastfed is at higher risk for childhood obesity, asthma, type 1 or 2 diabetes, leukemia, or SIDS.
• A newborn who is separated from any parent may experience stress hormones, which may lead to difficulty sleeping, developmental regression, heart disease, hypertension, obesity, diabetes or decreased life span.
• A newborn who is separated from a parent may also experience permanent architectural changes in the brain, including a lower intelligence quotient or an increased likelihood of depression, suicidal ideation, or addiction to alcohol or gambling.
SAFETY (GA)
• Incarcerated women pregnancies rank highest in infant mortality.
• Over half of incarcerated pregnant women have tested positive for COVID.
• Pregnant women who contract COVID risk the child's health including adverse outcomes.
• According to Grady News, Georgia has the highest ranking maternal mortality rate in the United States.
• According to the CDC, “pregnant Georgians were two times more likely to die during their pregnancy and up to one year postpartum than the average American.”
ACCOUNTABILITY & LIABILITY
• Despite the passing of HB 345, incarcerated pregnant women are still routinely being shackled and placed in solitary confinement, breaking the law and risking the lives of unborn babies.
• To date we have no data of incarcerated women including the number of pregnant women being detained in correctional facilities throughout GA which makes it impossible to implement HB345.
• Correctional facilities are not in compliance with CDC, DPH, ACOG, and NCCHC
• Penal institutions are not equipped to provide adequate prenatal, postpartum, or high risk pregnancy care. Most don't have contracts with an obstetrician or can provide prenatal vitamins.
• Correctional facilities do not provide recommended meals of adequate nutritional value but instead foods with high sodium and sugar.
• Correctional officers are not trained to recognize when a woman is in labor.
• Facilities are understaffed.
How does the Women’s CARE Act benefit the state?
• Eliminates millions of dollars spent monthly to provide housing, doctor visits for prenatal and postpartum care, specialist for high risk care, nutritional supplements, transportation costs to hospital and doctors visits, additional staff for hospital and transportation, child placement, and additional costs for supplies to comply with COVID-19 recommendations.
• Eliminates the accountability for COVID-19 precautions for pregnant women, maintaining an OB contract to provide perinatal care, ‘special diets,’ needed for nutritional care, as well as additional female staff needed to transport and be present for the hospitalization of the pregnant women.
• Eliminates the liability of facilities not complying with GA law of HB345, pregnant women contracting COVID-19, not providing adequate perinatal care and reproductive education, women delivering in cells alone, life threatening infections, nonconsensual procedures, and maternal-infant mortality.
How does the Women’s CARE Act help babies?
• The postpartum period is an essential time for the newborn to develop healthy physiologic responses.
• Newborn babies will be allowed minimal critical time with the mother for family bonding/attachment, provide breastfeeding, and improve overall health.
• Family bonding with the newborn can improve conditions for other children in the same family unit.
• Bonding between a newborn and parent prevents neglect, long-term health risks that are increased by separating the newborn from the parent.
How does the Women’s CARE Act help women?
• Women have autonomy (are accountable and liable) for their own perinatal and high-risk care to ensure healthy deliveries.
• Women have autonomy (are accountable and liable) to provide their own nutritional needs to support their pregnancy.
• Women have access to receive educational programming and resources to promote healthy parenting.
• Women have autonomy (are accountable and liable) for proper postpartum care to ensure they’re healthy prior to serving their sentence.
• Women will have sufficient time and opportunity to make placement arrangements.
• Women will have reduced anxiety with knowledge of placement of their babies and loss of parental rights.