H.R. 7718: Protecting the Health and Wellness of Babies and Pregnant Women in Custody Act

116th Congress · introduced 2020-07-22 · Crime and Law Enforcement · Latest: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2020-07-22 · official record
Who proposed it: Rep. Bass, Karen [D-CA-37] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Protecting the Health and Wellness of Babies and Pregnant Women in Custody Act

Plain summary

Protecting the Health and Wellness of Babies and Pregnant Women in Custody Act This bill contains provisions related to the medical needs of incarcerated women. The Bureau of Prisons (BOP) shall provide women in its custody access to certain reproductive health services. The bill also requires the BOP to (1) comply with requirements related to the health of a pregnant incarcerated woman, such as providing appropriate meals and medical services; and (2) provide appropriate health care to a woman with a high-risk pregnancy. The bill also modifies restrictions on using restraints on an incarcerated woman during pregnancy, labor, or after delivery. The bill prohibits such restraints unless the relevant corrections official and a health care professional determine that the restraints are appropriate for the woman's medical safety. The health care professional must review this determination every six hours. The current statute allows using such restraints if the corrections official determines that restraints are needed due to a flight risk or threat of harm, and does not require periodic review. The bill also prohibits the BOP from placing a pregnant woman into restrictive housing, such as solitary confinement, unless the relevant corrections official determines that such an action is necessary to address a serious and immediate risk of physical harm. This determination shall be reviewed every four hours. The Department of Justice may make grants to eligible entities, such as a state department of corrections, to provide obstetrical care, gynecological care, and related services to women in custody. The Bureau of Justice Statistics shall collect certain data related to the health needs of pregnant incarcerated women.

Congressional Research Service summary (Passed House), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Protecting the Health and Wellness of Babies and Pregnant Women in Custody Act

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Passed House)

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Bass, Karen [D-CA-37] · 35 cosponsors

Cost estimate: CBO cost estimate: CBO’s Estimate of the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Effects of H.R. 7718, The Protecting the Health and Wellness of Babies and Pregnant Women in Custody Act (2020-09-28); CBO cost estimate: Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Effects of H.R. 7718, The Protecting the Health and Wellness of Babies and Pregnant Women in Custody Act (2020-09-28)

Cosponsors on this site

Guy Reschenthaler (R-PA), Katherine M. Clark (D-MA), Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ), Ann Wagner (R-MO), André Carson (D-IN), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Grace Meng (D-NY), Alma S. Adams (D-NC), Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), Terri A. Sewell (D-AL), Marcy Kaptur (D-OH), Joyce Beatty (D-OH), Jahana Hayes (D-CT), Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE), J. Luis Correa (D-CA), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Sylvia R. Garcia (D-TX)

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (3)

Appropriation: Money a legislature sets aside by law for a specific purpose. Government agencies may spend public money only as it has been appropriated.
Bill: A proposed law. It becomes law only if it passes the legislature and is signed by the president or governor (or a veto is overridden).
Statute: A written law passed by a legislature. A statute can be changed by a later law; changing a constitution needs an amendment.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Passed House)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-116hr7718.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/116/hr>

Record fed-us-cong116-hr7718 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong116 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong116