Latest California Healthline Stories
California Prisons Are COVID Hotbeds Despite Billions Spent On Inmate Health
At $3.6 billion a year, California spends more on prison health care than other states spend to run their entire prison systems. But despite the spending, and federal court oversight, prisons across California are struggling to contain deadly outbreaks of COVID-19.
As COVID Cuts Deadly Path Through Indiana Prisons, Inmates Say Symptoms Ignored
Since the start of the pandemic, prisoners and their families have contradicted state officials about the conditions inside Indiana prisons. Many inmates report they’ve had no way to protect themselves from close contact with other inmates and staff members. They believe contracting the coronavirus is inevitable.
Under COVID Cloud, Prisons In Rural America Threaten To Choke Rural Hospitals
A rural Montana county of 5,000 people lays claim to the state’s highest COVID-19 infection rate. The community risks additional spread, though, because of a private prison situated there. If the virus infiltrates the prison and just a fraction of inmates get sick, the area’s limited health resources may not endure.
Jails And Prisons Spring Thousands To Prevent Coronavirus Outbreaks
As wardens across the country grapple with COVID-19 outbreaks, inmates are being released to prevent widespread contagion in overcrowded prisons.
Inspectores pintan color de rosa a los centros de detención, pero no las auditorías
Una revisión realizada por Kaiser Health News de miles de páginas de informes de inspecciones realizadas entre 2007 y 2019 revela patrones inquietantes en las auditorías de Nakamoto Group.
Inspector Paints A Rosy Picture Of Migrant Detention Centers — In Contrast To Audits
A KHN review of dozens of inspection reports filed over the past year by the Nakamoto Group reveals disturbing patterns about the company’s audits, including a general willingness to accept accounts of the facilities that the company is paid to scrutinize, and to discount detainees’ complaints.
State Prisons Fail To Offer Cure To 144,000 Inmates With Deadly Hepatitis C
A survey of 49 states reveals that an estimated 144,000 inmates with hepatitis C, a curable but potentially fatal disease, can’t get the expensive drugs they need to cure it. California lawmakers allocated $106 million in the state’s new budget to treat more infected prisoners.
Listen: Psychotropic Drug Use Up Sharply As Jails House More People With Mental Illness
The use of psychiatric drugs among inmates in California’s county jails has soared 25 percent in five years. California Healthline reporter Anna Gorman discussed this phenomenon in a recent radio interview.
Use Of Psychiatric Drugs Soars In California Jails
A combination of factors has led to an “astronomical” increase in mentally ill inmates, followed by increased efforts to identify those who need prescriptions. Some say the meds are underprescribed; others, that they are given inappropriately, without the benefit of comprehensive treatment.
Health Care Revamp At The L.A. County Jails
The effort, overseen by the county’s health services department, aims to improve care for a population with high rates of chronic disease, mental illness and drug addiction.