Lawmakers vow to improve care for pregnant women in jails

Officials in Congress and in states from Pennsylvania to California said they were alarmed by a Bloomberg Law and NBC News investigation.

This article was published in partnership with Bloomberg Law.

Lawmakers around the country, moved by harrowing stories of pregnancies in jail, are calling for new measures that make sure women and babies get the medical help they need.

Officials in Congress and in states from Pennsylvania to California said they were alarmed by a Bloomberg Law/NBC News investigation detailing systemic failures that allow vulnerable women to give birth in jail cells — sometimes with deadly results.

The proposals aim to keep pregnant women out of jail, monitor the cases of those who do get locked up, and get them proper health care.

“The allegations are really, truly, gutting,” said Pennsylvania state Sen. Amanda Cappelletti, a Democrat, who is proposing legislation in her state after reading the investigation.