Sec. 704. Grant program to improve maternal health outcomes for individuals in State and local prisons and jails
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Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General, acting through the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance, shall award Justice for Incarcerated Moms grants to States to establish or expand programs in State and local prisons and jails for pregnant and postpartum incarcerated individuals. The Attorney General shall award the grants authorized under subsection
(a)in consultation with interested entities such as— relevant community-based organizations, particularly organizations that represent incarcerated and formerly incarcerated individuals and organizations that seek to improve maternal health outcomes for minority women; relevant organizations representing patients, with a particular focus on minority patients; relevant organizations representing maternal health care providers; nonclinical perinatal health workers such as doulas, community health workers, peer supporters, certified lactation consultants, nutritionists and dietitians, social workers, home visitors, and navigators; and researchers and policy experts in fields related to women’s health care for incarcerated individuals. Each applicant for a grant under this section shall submit to the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance an application at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Director may require. A State that is awarded a grant under this section shall use such grant to establish or expand programs for pregnant and postpartum incarcerated individuals, and such programs may— provide access to doulas and other perinatal health workers from pregnancy through the postpartum period; provide access to healthy foods and counseling on nutrition, recommended activity levels, and safety measures throughout pregnancy; train correctional officers and medical personnel to ensure that pregnant incarcerated individuals receive trauma-informed, culturally congruent care that promotes the health and safety of the pregnant individuals; provide counseling and treatment for individuals who have suffered from— diagnosed mental or behavioral health conditions, including trauma and substance use disorders; domestic violence; human immunodeficiency virus; sexual abuse; pregnancy or infant loss; or chronic conditions, including heart disease, diabetes, osteoporosis and osteopenia, hypertension, asthma, liver disease, and bleeding disorders; provide pregnancy and childbirth education, parenting support, and other relevant forms of health literacy; offer opportunities for postpartum individuals to maintain contact with the individual’s newborn child to promote bonding, including enhanced visitation policies, access to prison nursery programs, or breastfeeding support; provide reentry assistance, particularly to— ensure continuity of health insurance coverage if an incarcerated individual exits the criminal justice system during such individual’s pregnancy or in the postpartum period; and connect individuals exiting the criminal justice system during pregnancy or in the postpartum period to community-based resources, such as referrals to health care providers and social services that address social determinants of health like housing, employment opportunities, transportation, and nutrition; or establish partnerships with local public entities, private community entities, community-based organizations, Indian Tribes and tribal organizations (as such terms are defined in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act ( 25 U.S.C. 5304 )), and urban Indian organizations (as such term is defined in section 4 of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act ( 25 U.S.C. 1603 )) to establish or expand pretrial diversion programs as an alternative to incarceration for pregnant and postpartum individuals. Such programs may include— parenting classes; prenatal health coordination; family and individual counseling; evidence-based screenings, education, and, as needed, treatment for mental and behavioral health conditions, including drug and alcohol treatments; family case management services; domestic violence education and prevention; physical and sexual abuse counseling; and programs to address social determinants of health such as employment, housing, education, transportation, and nutrition. In awarding grants under this section, the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance shall give priority to applicants based on— the number of pregnant and postpartum individuals incarcerated in the State and, among such individuals, the number of pregnant and postpartum minority individuals; and the extent to which the State has demonstrated a commitment to developing exemplary programs for pregnant and postpartum individuals incarcerated in the prisons and jails in the State. A grant awarded under this section shall be for a 5-year period. A State that receives a grant under this section shall be responsible for— implementing the program funded by the grant; and not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of this Act, and 6 years after the date of enactment of this Act, reporting results of such program to the Attorney General, including information describing— relevant quantitative indicators of the program’s success in improving the standard of care and health outcomes for pregnant and postpartum incarcerated individuals who participated in such program, including data stratified by race, ethnicity, sex, age, geography, disability status, category of the criminal charge against such individual, incidence rates of pregnancy-related deaths, pregnancy-associated deaths, cases of infant mortality, cases of severe maternal morbidity, cases of violence against pregnant or postpartum individuals, diagnoses of maternal mental or behavioral health conditions, and other such information as appropriate; relevant qualitative evaluations from pregnant and postpartum incarcerated individuals who participated in such programs, including subjective measures of patient-reported experience of care; evaluations of cost effectiveness; and strategies to sustain such programs beyond the duration of the grant. Not later than 7 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall submit to the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives and the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate a report describing the results of the grant program authorized under this section. Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall award a contract to an independent organization or independent organizations to conduct oversight of the programs described in subsection (d). There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2021 through 2025.