Psychiatric Drugs In California Jails

The number of county jail inmates in California taking psychotropic drugs has jumped about 25 percent in five years, and they now account for about a fifth of the state jail population. The increase could reflect the growing number of inmates with mental illness, though it also might stem from better identification of people who need treatment. Some say the medications are overprescribed, while others argue that some inmates who need the drugs aren’t receiving them.

For more, read Anna Gorman’s coverage.

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<h1>Psychiatric Drugs In California Jails</h1>
<div>		<time class="posted-on" datetime="2018-07-11T02:00:07-07:00">
			July 11, 2018		</time>
		</div>
<p>The number of county jail inmates in California taking psychotropic drugs has jumped about 25 percent in five years, and they now account for about a fifth of the state jail population. The increase could reflect the growing number of inmates with mental illness, though it also might stem from better identification of people who need treatment. Some say the medications are overprescribed, while others argue that some inmates who need the drugs aren’t receiving them.</p><p>For more, read <a href="https://californiahealthline.org/news/number-of-california-jail-inmates-on-psychiatric-drugs-soars/">Anna Gorman’s coverage</a>.</p><p></p><ul><li><a href="https://californiahealthline.org/multimedia/psychiatric-drugs-in-california-jails/?share=facebook">				Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)				Facebook			</a></li><li><a href="https://californiahealthline.org/multimedia/psychiatric-drugs-in-california-jails/?share=linkedin">				Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)				LinkedIn			</a></li><li><a href="https://californiahealthline.org/multimedia/psychiatric-drugs-in-california-jails/?share=x">				Click to share on X (Opens in new window)				X			</a></li><li><a href="mailto:?subject=%5BShared%20Post%5D%20Psychiatric%20Drugs%20In%20California%20Jails&body=https%3A%2F%2Fcaliforniahealthline.org%2FMjgyNTU4&share=email">				Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)				Email			</a></li><li><a href="https://californiahealthline.org/multimedia/psychiatric-drugs-in-california-jails/#print?share=print">				Click to print (Opens in new window)				Print			</a></li></ul><em><a href="https://kffhealthnews.org/about-us">KFF Health News</a> is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF—an independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. Learn more about <a href="https://www.kff.org/about-us">KFF</a>.</em><p><a href="https://californiahealthline.org/morning-briefing/">Subscribe</a> to KFF Health News' free Morning Briefing.</p>

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