New Report Details Issues Pregnant Women Face Getting Medical Care In ICE Detention

A new report from the Women’s Refugee Commission and the group Physicians for Human Rights details issues pregnant women face getting medical care in ICE detention.

Researchers traveled to health clinics in Honduras last November to speak with medical staff and women who had recently been deported from the U.S.

Report co-author Zain Lakhani, director of migrant rights and justice, says one woman was hospitalized after receiving no medical treatment in ICE custody for a missed miscarriage — when a fetus has died but has not been physically expelled. The condition can be fatal without treatment.

“These women are just not being visible as people who have high risk and potentially life threatening conditions, and are not receiving medical care. And at the same time, we’re seeing a pretty severe crisis of deaths in custody due to medical neglect,” she said.