Policy document
Human Trafficking: ACOG COMMITTEE OPINION, Number 787.
·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This is a clinical guidance document for obstetrician-gynecologists on identifying and assisting victims of human trafficking. It notes that trafficking disproportionately affects women and girls, with over 70% of cases involving females and over 90% of sex trafficking victims. The document provides guidance for healthcare providers to recognize signs of trafficking and understand reporting obligations. However, this document does not evaluate child well-being outcomes or interventions.
Key points
- More than 70% of trafficking cases involve women and girls
- More than 90% of victims trafficked into the sex industry are female
- One half of all female victims of sex trafficking have visited the emergency department while involved in trafficking
- Obstetrician-gynecologists and women's health providers are well-positioned to identify trafficking victims
- The document provides screening questions and indicators for identifying trafficking victims
Limitations
This is a clinical guidance document, not an empirical evaluation of interventions or outcomes. It does not measure the effectiveness of screening or assistance programs, nor does it assess changes in child well-being or protection outcomes.
Abstract
Human trafficking, or modern-day slavery, is a global problem with broad reach that is often underrecognized in the United States. Victims of trafficking have been found in a wide range of legal and illegal business settings, and this frequently hidden population is most often exploited in the commercial sex industry, agriculture, factories, hotels, restaurants, as domestic workers, and by marriage brokers and some adoption firms. Human trafficking disproportionately affects underserved women and children, with more than 70% of trafficking cases involving women and girls and more than 90% of victims trafficked into the sex industry. Obstetrician-gynecologists and other women's health care providers are well-situated to identify and assist victims of human trafficking. Many trafficked individuals present to outpatient obstetrics and gynecology clinics, community health centers, family planning clinics, urgent care centers, and adolescent medicine clinics, and one half of all female victims of sex trafficking have visited the emergency department while involved in sex trafficking. Obstetrician-gynecologists and other women's health care providers should be aware of human trafficking, recognize signs of human trafficking, and be prepared to assist patients who are victims or who have been victims of human trafficking. This Committee Opinion has been updated to include screening questions and indicators to identify victims of human trafficking, additional information regarding reporting obligations for suspected human trafficking, and additional resources for survivors of human trafficking.