CBP Quietly Revoking Protections for Pregnant Women and Infants, Critics Say: ‘Culture of Cruelty’

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has rescinded four internal policies designed to protect vulnerable individuals in its custody, including pregnant women, infants, the elderly, and those with serious medical conditions.

Critics say the change could further endanger individuals already at high risk in CBP facilities, which have faced longstanding scrutiny for medical neglect.

The reversal was outlined in a May 5 memo signed by Acting Commissioner Pete Flores and circulated internally without public announcement. The memo states the policies were “obsolete” and “misaligned with current Agency guidance and immigration enforcement priorities.”

Cancelled guidelines include those requiring access to water and food for pregnant people, privacy for breastfeeding mothers, and the stocking of diapers and unexpired formula. The policies also included instructions to expedite processing of at-risk individuals to limit time in custody.

CBP maintains that its personnel remain bound by broader requirements under the National Standards on Transport, Escort, Detention, and Search (TEDS), as well as the Flores Settlement Agreement, which outlines basic care standards for juveniles. However, advocates and lawmakers consulted by WIRED argue the rollback undermines protections that were meant to address systemic failures in detainee care.

“This is a damning statement about the way that this administration thinks and cares about people with young children,” said Sarah Mehta, deputy director of Government Affairs for the ACLU’s Equality Division. “It’s just an extension of the culture of cruelty that the administration is trying to perpetrate.”

The policy change is particularly controversial considering a Senate Judiciary Committee report published in January 2024 that revealed widespread dysfunction in CBP’s medical operations. The report was published following the 2023 death of 8-year-old Anadith Reyes Álvarez in custody, a Panamanian girl who had sickle cell anemia and congenital heart disease and died after days of pleading for help with her mother at a CBP facility in Texas. Staff failed to check her medical records and denied her emergency care.

Key findings from the report included prolonged detentions for children—sometimes exceeding two weeks—chronic understaffing, failures to use medical record systems, and unclear authority for medical staff to call emergency services. It also highlighted inadequate oversight of CBP’s medical contractor, Loyal Source Government Services.

Senator Dick Durbin, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, condemned the policy rescission through comments made to WIRED:

“Instead of taking actions to course correct, the Trump administration rescinded several internal policies aimed at protecting some of the most vulnerable individuals in CBP custody—including pregnant women, children, the elderly, and those with serious medical conditions. This is unacceptable. We are a nation of values, and these values should be represented in the care of vulnerable people in our government’s custody”