Incarcerated people—especially Black, Indigenous, people of color (BIPOC), women, and LGBTQ+ people—have specific and significant reproductive needs. Most incarcerated people are in peak reproductive years and have histories of physical and/or sexual violence, contributing to higher rates of serious medical complications, including sexually transmitted diseases that often go untreated. They face barriers to accessing reproductive healthcare during incarceration, including a lack of services, high costs associated with seeking services (i.e. the need to pay for transportation fees, officer time, and services), and poor quality of care. Reproductive healthcare for incarcerated people is an acutely understudied area, despite its promise in reducing generational health disparities for BIPOC.
California’s AB-732, which was signed into law in September 2020, aims to increase reproductive healthcare access and quality for incarcerated people and pregnant incarcerated people in state prisons and county jails. This law presents an important opportunity to advance reproductive justice for incarcerated people and racial equity in health and wellbeing, especially for BIPOC, who have disproportionately higher experiences of involvement with the criminal legal system. While Black people make up 6% and Latinx people make up 38% of CA’s total population, Black people constitute 20% and Latinx people comprise 41% of the jail population. Further, the number of women in CA jails has grown by 210% since 1980, demonstrating an urgent need to address reproductive needs during incarceration.
With an analysis of jail data and in-depth interviews with incarcerated people at Las Colinas Detention and Reentry Facility in San Diego County, CA, this study will evaluate to what extent AB-732 increases access to and quality of reproductive healthcare for incarcerated people and advance racial equity in health and wellbeing.