LANSING — Pregnant women in correctional facilities make up a small percentage of inmates, but a new study outlines the increased amount of care that they require and federal assistance to support them.

According to a study by the U.S. Government Accountability Office, the U.S. incarcerates women at the highest rate in the world, and also has one of the “highest maternal mortality rates among high-income nations.” The office is a nonpartisan investigative arm of Congress.

Women comprise 15% of inmates in local jails and 8-9% of state prison inmates nationally.

Jails and prisons have resources available to pregnant women, according to the office.

As of Oct. 31, women accounted for 5.4% of the state’s prison population, or 1,781 of the 32,802 total inmates, according to the Department of Corrections.

There is only one state prison for female inmates, Women’s Huron Valley Correctional Facility in Ypsilanti. All have been convicted and are serving sentences of more than a year.

According to Wayne State University’s School of Social Work, in 2017 women made up about 21% of the county jail population in Michigan. County jails house suspects awaiting trial and convicted defendants serving sentences of one year or less.

Debra Gibson, a licensed clinical social worker with the Corrections Department, works as the pregnancy coordinator for state facilities.

Her responsibilities are to meet with pregnant prisoners to discuss their needs and explain the services available to them. She oversees patient advocacy and coordinating services, such as referring prisoners to doula and pregnancy counseling services.

Counseling services occur through Catholic Social Services, where a social worker speaks with prisoners about where they plan to place the baby and whether everyone in that particular home meets safety regulations.

“One other service that we are right now coordinating is lactation services, where we’re going to have breast milk deliveries, and hopefully that’s happening shortly,” said Gibson.

They are also offered dietary services and referred to a dietitian upon arrival.

Matt Saxton is the executive director of the Michigan Sheriffs’ Association, which provides education and training programs for county sheriffs’ departments.

He said county jails may work with judges to get pregnant women released early.

However, such efforts have diminished as jails found that many pregnant inmates received better medical treatment while in custody, especially prenatal care, than when they were “out on the street or out of jail,” said Saxton.