NEW: More than a dozen Democratic senators called on immigration authorities to restore presumptive release for pregnant women after a stillbirth in gov't detention earlier this year and an increase in miscarriages in 2018, per letter obtained by NBCNews.
"These women need a safe environment and regular access to medical care, which ICE and CBP have failed to provide," one senator said.
"In the absence of compelling evidence that the detention of a pregnant woman is necessary because she is a threat to herself or others, or is a threat to public safety or national security, the civil detention of an expectant mother for potential immigration offenses is never justified," said the letter, which was sent to Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection on Monday morning.
"Stories of pregnant women being mistreated or having their medical needs neglected while in [Department of Homeland Security] custody are unconscionable," Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., said in a statement to NBC News. The senator is the lead signature on the letter, along with 15 others including several 2020 hopefuls such as Sens. Cory Booker, D-N.J., Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., Kamala Harris, D-Calif., Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.
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