The Mistreatment and Abuse of Pregnant, Nursing, and Postpartum Women and Girls in US Immigration Detention Centers

Author: Danielle Castrano

July 31, 2026

Federal agents detain a woman who is nine months pregnant after she exited a hearing in immigration court in New York on September 11, 2025. [Image credit: Michael Nigro/LightRocket via Getty Images]

Background of the Problem

President Donald Trump promised the largest mass deportation in U.S. history during his presidential campaign. As of December 19th, 2025, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reported 622,000 noncitizens had been deported since Trump took office earlier that year (Putzel-Kavanaugh et al., 2026). The Trump administration claims that over a million people self-deported; however, there is no data that proves this claim (Putzel-Kavanaugh et al., 2026). Furthermore, access to asylum was shut down, and unauthorized arrivals to the U.S.-Mexico border have plummeted.

Human rights advocates are sounding the alarm on the mistreatment of pregnant and nursing mothers by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in detention centers. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), alongside other human rights organizations, interviewed more than a dozen pregnant women who described horrific treatment while detained at ICE detention centers (Strum, 2025). The DHS has drawn scrutiny for its lack of emergency medical care, inadequate food and water, and overcrowding in facilities, which can be especially dangerous to pregnant, nursing, and postpartum mothers. 

In 2025, ICE stopped publicly reporting the number of pregnant detainees and refused to disclose this information to Congress (Strum, 2025). In the past, data on the number of pregnant detainees was provided to Congress twice a year. Under ICE Directive 11032.4, ICE agents should not detain, arrest, or take into custody individuals who are known to be pregnant, postpartum, or nursing unless under extreme circumstances. If detained, the facility is required to provide them with access to certain forms of specialized medical care and is prohibited from using certain restraints. Additionally, the ICE Health Services Corps (IHSC) is required to collect and monitor information on the health and safety of individuals in their custody (National Immigration Law Center & Women’s Refugee Commission, 2026). Human rights advocates and organizations have sounded the alarm on reports of miscarriages, denial of prenatal care, and inadequate food and medical attention while in ICE detention centers (Strum, 2025). There are also reports of unaccompanied pregnant minors being sent to a single detention center in Texas with very little access to medical care (Betancourt, 2026). It has been quite challenging to get information about their care, where they are being sent, and what happens to their children. 

Pregnant Migrants in Immigration Custody

In September 2025, over 30 U.S. Senators wrote a letter to then Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem about concerns regarding the treatment of pregnant, nursing, and postpartum women detained in ICE detention facilities. They also called on ICE agents to stop  detaining pregnant, nursing, and postpartum women and requested information on the number of these individuals in custody and undergoing treatment. In February 2026, the Center for Reproductive Rights filed two Freedom of Information Acts (FOIA) seeking information following reports of the mistreatment and neglect of pregnant, postpartum, and nursing women in immigration detention centers (Rourke, 2026). After significant pushback from the public, human rights organizations, and political actors, DHS was forced to respond. 

Between October 2017 and August 2018, 1,655 pregnant women were detained, and 28 women had miscarriages while in ICE custody (Ellmann, 2019). In 2026, DHS reported that 363 pregnant, postpartum, and nursing immigrants were deported from the U.S. between January 2025 and February 2026 (Luthra, 2026). At the time of the DHS report, 121 people who were actively detained were pregnant, postpartum, or nursing women; nine of these detainees were in their third trimester (Luthra, 2026). These individuals were reported for not receiving the recommended prenatal vitamins, being handcuffed and restrained during transport, being held in solitary confinement, and receiving late or substandard prenatal care (Caro, 2025). Furthermore, most detainees are being held in states with strict abortion bans and a lack of access to maternity care. 

Pregnant unaccompanied minors are being held at a facility in San Benito, Texas, in addition to the poor living conditions. In July 2025, Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) Acting Director Angie Salazar issued a directive to place all pregnant unaccompanied minors into a single shelter (Betancourt, 2026). Since July 2025, the facility has housed more than a dozen girls, some as young as 13, and about half of those pregnancies have resulted from rape (Schreiber, 2026). San Benito, Texas, is located several hours from major cities where most hospitals, including specialized obstetric care, are located. Due to their age, most of these pregnancies are considered high risk of complications, putting them further at risk when there are few hospitals nearby. 

Additionally, Texas’ near-total abortion ban has put strains on obstetric and maternity care. Research has found that states that implemented abortion bans see a 9 percent rise in pregnancy-associated and pregnancy-related mortality (Bell et al., 2026). Texas’ abortion law only allows abortion in cases where the mother’s life is in danger, or one of their bodily functions is at risk. The state also punishes doctors for performing abortions with a minimum fine of $100,000, the loss of the health care provider’s medical license, and the potential for a life sentence in prison (Spencer, 2024). As a result, doctors remain concerned about potential legal repercussions when performing an abortion, even more so if it results in the woman’s death. Furthermore, the abortion ban has caused practicing OBGYN physicians to leave due to the fear of being criminalized for providing abortion services, which has also contributed to a rise in maternity care deserts.

In the past, the ORR would place pregnant, unaccompanied migrant children in ORR shelters or foster homes around the country that are equipped to handle high-risk pregnancies (Betancourt, 2026). The Biden administration passed a federal regulation stating that if unaccompanied migrant children who wanted to terminate their pregnancy were detained in a state where it was not legal, ORR had to transfer them to a state where it was permissible (Betancourt, 2026). ORR officials, former government officials, health care professionals, migrant advocates, and civil rights attorneys are concerned that the Trump administration is knowingly putting pregnant minors at risk to advance an ideological goal, denying them access to abortion services by placing them in a state where it's virtually banned (Betancourt, 2026). Similar to other detention centers , the San Benito facility has also faced criticism over allegations of a lack of access to adequate health care for pregnant women. In April 2026, Representative Maxine Dexter, a Democratic congresswoman from Oregon, visited the San Benito facility and was blocked from speaking with any of the detained individuals (Schreiber, 2026). She pointed out that there is a lack of public information regarding the fate of these girls and their babies once they enter custody, and she noted that no details were provided about their destinations. 

Conclusion

Criticism over the inhumane treatment of detainees in detention centers is not a new issue. However, the severity and frequency of human rights violations are rising. Even though pregnant women and girls in detention make up a small population, it is vital that these women and girls receive proper medical care. The lack of information surrounding the number of pregnant, nursing, and postpartum women detained opens the door for abuse and mistreatment to go unreported. Furthermore, the agency's lack of transparency allows ICE to avoid accountability when accused of human rights violations. In order for detainees to receive humane treatment in detention centers, it is imperative that these issues be addressed. 

---

Glossary

• Deportation - The removal from a country by an executive government agency of a foreign-born noncitizen.

• Detained - To force someone officially to stay in a place

• Maternity Desert - Counties across the U.S. in which access to maternity care services is limited or absent, either through lack of services or barriers to a woman's ability to access that care within the counties.

• Obstetric Care - crucial for both maternal health and fetal health. It ensures a safe delivery by preparing and managing the pregnancy journey from start to finish.

• Pregnancy-related Mortality - The annual number of female deaths from any cause related to or aggravated by pregnancy or its management (excluding accidental or incidental causes) during pregnancy and childbirth or within 42 days of termination of pregnancy, irrespective of the duration and site of the pregnancy.

• Postpartum - Starts immediately after childbirth and generally lasts six to eight weeks.

• Reproductive Rights - Human rights that relate to reproduction and sex, grounded in rights to dignity, autonomy, and equality.

• Unaccompanied - To be without a companion, escort, or partner. 

---

References

1. Bell, S. et al. (2026). Abortion Bans and Maternal, Pregnancy-Related, and Pregnancy-Associated Mortality in 14 US States, 2016–2023: Estimated Impacts Amid Substantial Measurement Challenges, American Journal of Public Health 116, no. 6: pp. 819-828

2. Betancourt, M. (2026). The Trump administration is sending pregnant migrant girls to a Texas shelter lacking proper care : NPR. Retrieved from https://www.npr.org/2026/03/03/nx-s1-5712323/pregnant-migrant-girls-texas-shelter

3. Caro, P. (2025). The ordeal of pregnant women detained by ice: Malnutrition, isolation, and miscarriages. Retrieved from https://english.elpais.com/usa/2025-10-23/the-ordeal-of-pregnant-women-detained-by-ice-malnutrition-isolation-and-miscarriages.html#

4. Ellmann, N. (2019). Women’s Health and Rights in Immigration Detention.Retrieved from https://www.americanprogress.org/article/immigration-detention-dangerous-womens-health-rights/

5. Luthra, S. (2026). ICE has been deporting pregnant and postpartum immigrants. Now we know how many. Retrieved from https://19thnews.org/2026/03/ice-deporting-pregnant-postpartum-immigrants-data/

6. National Immigration Law Center & Women’s Refugee Commission. (2026). Retrieved from https://www.nilc.org/resources/what-ices-data-on-pregnant-postpartum-and-lactating-women-in-ice-detention-really-shows/

7. Putzel-Kavanaugh, C., Bush-Joseph, K., & Chishti, M. (2026). Unleashing power in New Ways: Immigration in the first year of Trump 2.0. Retrieved from https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/trump-2-immigration-1st-year

8. Rourke, C. (2026). Trump Admin Must Provide Answers for Horrifying Treatment of Pregnant ICE Detainees. Retrieved from https://reproductiverights.org/news/trump-admin-must-provide-answers-for-horrifying-treatment-of-pregnant-ice-detainees/

9. Schreiber, M. (2026). ‘Where are all the kids?’: questions arise over treatment of pregnant minors in Texas immigration facility. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jun/01/pregnant-minors-texas-ice-facility

10. Spencer, S. H. (2024). Texas abortion recipients not subject to penalty, contrary to online claims. Retrieved from https://www.factcheck.org/2024/02/texas-abortion-recipients-not-subject-to-penalty-contrary-to-online-claims/

11. Strum, L. (2025). Pregnant women in ice detention suffer miscarriages, neglect. Retrieved from https://www.aclu.org/news/immigrants-rights/pregnant-and-postpartum-women-face-neglect-and-abuse-in-ice-detention