Supreme Court, Healthcare & Incarcerated People

Highlighted Stories

Editor's Note

This week’s highlighted stories involve lawsuits brought by incarcerated people or their estates alleging failures by responsible parties to provide adequate healthcare. The first concerns a case now before the Supreme Court that asks whether an incarcerated person may sue a nurse who allegedly refused to provide medical treatment. The case has drawn considerable attention because it could further narrow the ability of individuals to seek damages from federal officials for constitutional violations under Bivens v. Six Unknown Named Agents.

The next two cases have already been decided. In the first, the Third Circuit rejected the claims of a Pennsylvania prisoner who alleged that his Eighth Amendment and Americans with Disabilities Act rights were violated after he was removed from medication for addiction treatment (MAT) when prison officials accused him of diverting his buprenorphine. The second case concerned the death of a woman who had informed staff in a jail in Maryland that she was a heroin addict going through withdrawal. It is claimed that correctional staff ignored her pleas and she was later found dead in her cell. Her estate attempted to sue correctional officers asserting that they had been deliberately indifferent. The correctional officers wanted the case dismissed on grounds of qualified immunity. A district court dismissed the officers claim of qualified immunity, but the Fourth Circuit reversed the district court’s decision.

Whatever the merits of these individual cases, they reinforce a theme COCHS has returned to repeatedly, most recently in our August 19, 2025, Editor's Note. At that time, we talked about the relative ineffectiveness of one government bureaucracy or federal court attempting to hold accountable those who are responsible for healthcare within correctional environments. This is one reason COCHS has long advocated bringing Medicaid behind the walls of correctional facilities. Medicaid creates an enforceable legal entitlement to healthcare. A Medicaid card gives an individual a property right and that property right cannot be denied without due process. In our view, strengthening those rights through Medicaid has always offered a more promising path toward improving correctional healthcare than relying on oversite organizations or lawsuits brought after harm has already occurred. Given the current tenor of the federal courts, that conclusion seems even more compelling today.

Yet, as the fourth highlighted article from Tradeoffs illustrates, the effort to expand Medicaid behind the walls now faces significant headwinds. Although nineteen states have received federal approval to enroll eligible individuals in Medicaid prior to release, implementation has become more uncertain following passage of H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). Medicaid work requirements have already caused several states to pause their implementation efforts.

It is interesting to compare this article with another Tradeoffs story we highlighted in the same August 19, 2025 Weekly Update mentioned above. At that time, that publication expressed cautious optimism about Medicaid behind the walls, noting that the proposed Medicaid work requirements exempted incarcerated individuals within ninety days of release, suggesting continued bipartisan support for this particularly vulnerable population. A year later, that optimism appears far more difficult to sustain.

Court Cases

Taking up a case that could further erode the rights of people to sue federal officers for constitutional violations, the Supreme Court agreed to consider whether a prison inmate could sue a nurse for failing to provide medical assistance after a riot. The case concerns a lawsuit brought by Kekai Watanabe, who alleges he was denied medical treatment following a riot at a federal prison in Honolulu in July 2021. The justices will consider the scope of a 1980 Supreme Court ruling called Carlson v. Green that said federal prison inmates could sue officials for deliberate indifference to their medical needs under the Constitution’s 8th Amendment, which protects against cruel and unusual punishment. That ruling was a rare occasion in which the court expanded on a decision from nine years earlier called Bivens v. Six Unknown Named Agents, which first found that people could sue federal officials for constitutional violations.

Jonathan DiFraia, a Pennsylvania state prisoner who was receiving buprenorphine for opioid use disorder, was found in possession of a prohibited e-cigarette while waiting in the medication line. Prison officials alleged that DiFraia was diverting his medication, a claim he denied. Three days later, a prison physician informed him that he would be tapered off buprenorphine, after which DiFraia began experiencing withdrawal symptoms. DiFraia subsequently filed a lawsuit against prison officials, alleging violations of the Eighth Amendment and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The district court dismissed his claims, and he appealed. DiFraia argued that prisons may deny medical treatment only on the basis of individualized medical judgment and that withholding necessary treatment for non-medical reasons constitutes deliberate indifference. The Third Circuit affirmed the dismissal, ruling that his removal from the prison's medication for addiction treatment (MAT) program was lawful. The court noted that DiFraia had never alleged that buprenorphine was medically necessary to treat his opioid use disorder and further observed that "diverting medication suggests that one no longer needs it." The court also rejected his ADA claim, concluding that he was removed from the MAT program not because of his disability, but rather "despite it."

When Cynthia Rice was booked into a detention center in Elkton, Maryland, she informed staff that she was addicted to heroin and experiencing opioid withdrawal. Medical personnel classified her as a "high-priority detox check." The following day, Rice was reportedly heard screaming in pain from her cell, and according to the complaint, custody staff told her to "shut up" rather than provide assistance. Later that afternoon, she was found dead. Rice's estate sued detention officers under the Fourteenth Amendment, alleging deliberate indifference to her serious medical needs. The complaint asserted that each defendant had been made aware of Rice's condition either through personal observation, reports from other detainees, or information from staff. Although the district court denied the officers' motion to dismiss on qualified immunity grounds, the Fourth Circuit reversed, holding that the complaint improperly treated the defendants as an undifferentiated group rather than identifying what any specific officer knew or did. The court further concluded that, as nonmedical personnel, the officers were generally entitled to rely on the judgment of the detention center's medical staff.

Medicaid

Washington is one of 19 states that have received federal approval to enroll people in Medicaid before they leave jail or prison — a radical change in Medicaid policy that health care and law enforcement leaders believe will save lives. Many people leave jail and prison with untreated mental illness, substance use disorders and chronic diseases. Finding insurance and treatment while also looking for a place to live, a job and reconnecting with family can be incredibly difficult. H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, is already narrowing the potential impact of this policy experiment. At least three states have paused their efforts to bring Medicaid behind bars as they deal with new Medicaid work requirements, more frequent renewals and budget pressures. Louisiana, meanwhile, became the first state to win approval under President Donald Trump, after limiting the services its program would cover and finding other ways to pay for implementation costs.

Follow Ups

Ending Crime and Disorder on America’s Streets

Editor's Comment: Last week, the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel released a memorandum asserting that states are not required to provide in-home or community-based services to people with disabilities. The article links the memorandum to the Trump Administration's broader shift toward institutionalization reflected in the Executive Order, Ending Crime and Disorder on America's Streets. As the article explains, however, the memorandum appears inconsistent with the long-standing interpretation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which requires that people with disabilities receive services in the most integrated setting appropriate to their needs. Furthermore, the memorandum appears to be in direct conflict with the Supreme Court's decision in Olmstead v. L.C., which held that, under certain circumstances, states have a legal obligation to provide services that allow people with disabilities to live in their communities rather than in institutions.

When the Trump Administration first issued Ending Crime and Disorder on America's Streets, the Weekly Update initially presented articles both supporting and criticizing the order. In our August 19, 2025 Follow Up, we noted that the American Bar Association had anticipated many of the legal issues now raised by the Office of Legal Counsel's memorandum. The ABA specifically argued that the Executive Order conflicted with the ADA, the Supreme Court's decision in Olmstead v. L.C., and the due process protections of the Fourteenth Amendment.

Over the past several months, we have seen just how far-reaching the Executive Order has become. We have reported on Utah's proposed homeless campus, CDC's reduction in overdose prevention funding, SAMHSA's "Dear Colleague" letter signaling a shift away from harm reduction, the Department of Veterans Affairs' Project Safe Harbor aimed at the involuntary placement of homeless veterans, and HUD's reduction of funding for permanent supportive housing, among other developments. This latest memorandum, however, goes beyond changes in funding or program priorities. It challenges a long-settled interpretation of the ADA and the Supreme Court's decision in Olmstead. In our opinion, this may prove to be the most significant policy shift associated with the Executive Order.

The Justice Department released a memo that calls into question decades of civil rights protections for Americans with disabilities. The memo, an opinion from the Office of Legal Counsel, argues that states do not have to provide in-home or community-based care to people with disabilities. This memo questions what legal experts say has been settled law for decades. Both Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act have long been interpreted to require that states provide services to Americans with disabilities in the most integrated setting appropriate. In 1999, Olmstead v. L.C made it to the U.S. Supreme Court. The court ruled that states have a legal responsibility to provide support that integrates the disabled into their communities. For nearly three decades, courts have embraced that interpretation. The Justice Department memo appears to be the latest salvo in a broader effort that began on July 24, 2025, when President Trump issued the executive order, Ending Crime and Disorder on America’s Streets, intended to make it easier for state and local governments to police homelessness.

Marana ICE Detention Center

Editor's Comment: We return in this Follow Up to the story of the planned ICE detention facility in Marana, Arizona, to be operated by Management & Training Corporation (MTC). The story first appeared in the October 28, 2025 Weekly Update. At the time, it seemed like one of many ICE-related stories appearing in the news. There was, however, an interesting twist: MTC was purchasing the Marana Community Correctional Treatment Facility from the Arizona Department of Administration—a facility that MTC had previously owned. There was also the noteworthy fact that, at the beginning of the second Trump Administration, MTC had hired a lobbying firm to advocate for additional funding for ICE detention beds. Still, amid the many immigration and detention stories circulating at the time, the repurchase of the facility and the lobbying effort did not seem especially remarkable.

As time passed, however, opposition from community members began to attract increasing attention. In March of this year, Congresswoman Adelita S. Grijalva representing Arizona's 7th Congressional District, issued a statement expressing concern that the Marana community had not been given a meaningful opportunity to provide input on the proposed facility. In our April 28 Weekly Update Editor's Note, we mentioned that U.S. Senators Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego had sent a letter to the Department of Homeland Security urging a pause in the opening of the facility.

The story had clearly evolved beyond a local controversy. Even the New York Times, writing from its august gray tower on Eighth Avenue in Manhattan, decided the developments in Marana warranted national attention. The article discussed local opposition to a proposed data center, and more to our concerns, the controversy surrounding the ICE detention facility. Town officials maintained that they had little authority stop the detention facility. Marana Mayor Jon Post was quoted as saying that the town council's hands were tied.

Now, in this week's Marana Follow Up, Arizona Luminaria reports that the federal government intends to triple the size of the detention facility and may begin housing detainees before the planned expansion is completed. The facility was originally expected to hold approximately 750 people. A second Arizona Luminaria article brings local politics directly into the story. With primary elections approaching in July, community members will have an opportunity to alter the composition of the town council and potentially elect representatives more willing to challenge ICE's plans.

At this moment in the nation's history, it is easy to view the executive branch of the federal government as acting by largely uncontested fiat. Yet the evolution of the Marana story serves as a reminder that the decentralized governmental structure upon which the United States was built still provides opportunities for local communities to make their voices heard. Whether those voices ultimately alter the outcome remains to be seen, but the answer will become part of the historical record.

The federal government aims to nearly triple the capacity of a former prison in Marana slated to become an immigration detention center, moving the building to 1,300-bed capacity from 513 through the use of temporary beds. The facility could also begin housing people even as construction moves ahead, according to a Department of Homeland Security notice alerting the public to possible construction in a floodplain. The proposed immigration detention center in Marana has been at the center of a regional organizing effort in opposition to the project since last fall, when a community meeting brought out hundreds of people to discuss the federal government’s plans. The building, formerly a state prison, is to be run by private prison operator Management and Training Corporation, or MTC. Previously, immigration officials said they planned to increase the capacity from 500 to 775 people.

Marana residents voting in the July primary may do more than select their next mayor and four council members — they could shift their town’s approach to two of the country’s most controversial issues. The construction of a large-scale data center and the opening of an immigration detention center have brought passionate disagreement in this community of roughly 60,000. Controversy revolves around elected officials not taking an official stand on the expected opening of an immigration detention center at the site of a former private prison.

Larry R. Hill Medical Reform Act

Editor's Comment: Minnesota's Court of Appeals has ruled against the Minnesota Sheriffs' Association and Advanced Correctional Healthcare (ACH) in their effort to block the amended Larry R. Hill Medical Reform Act, which is scheduled to take effect on August 1.

For subscribers who may have lost track of this story, a brief recap is in order. Larry R. Hill was a 36-year-old Minneapolis man who died in custody at the Hennepin County Jail on September 26, 2023, after being denied his prescribed medications. The Larry R. Hill Medical Reform Act initially required jails to provide detained individuals with medications that been prescribed in the community, an effort aimed at preventing similar in-custody deaths.

The law prompted a hue and cry from both the Minnesota Sheriffs' Association and ACH. One of their principal objections was that the legislation did not adequately account for a person's current medical condition at the time of booking. Could a medication that had been prescribed in the community now be harmful or inappropriate? Supporters of the law countered that adequate safeguards already existed. A detained person could provide written consent to a medication change, and community providers could be contacted to modify prescriptions when clinically necessary. In the amended version of the law, correctional licensed healthcare providers should make reasonable efforts to consult with outside providers in the event a prescription modification is deemed necessary.

Even before the Court of Appeals upheld the law, other courts appeared less than sympathetic to the arguments advanced by the sheriffs and ACH. In September 2025, a Ramsey County judge lifted a restraining order that had temporarily blocked the initial legislation.

COCHS does have some sympathy for the sheriffs. Having served as jail monitors in a different technological environment, we understand that booking can be a chaotic process. Determining a detained person's healthcare needs may be difficult, particularly when that individual is incapacitated, uncooperative, or unable to provide accurate medical information. Technological interfaces that can show an individual’s community medication at booking are rarely employed. Additional requirements can appear burdensome and may seem to complicate an already challenging process when in fact technology can make the process more efficient.

However, as we noted in our July 15, 2025 Editor's Note, broader issues are at play. A persistent tension exists between correctional institutions and community standards of care. There is also a less appreciated operational issue. Most correctional facilities rely on formularies that specify preferred medications. Laws such as the Larry R. Hill Medical Reform Act may require facilities to accommodate a wider range of community-prescribed medications, potentially forcing them to operate what amounts to two formularies simultaneously. In Minnesota, much of that responsibility would fall on ACH.

The question, however, is whether we should extend the same degree of sympathy to ACH as we do to the sheriffs. If ACH finds contacting a prescribing physician so burdensome, has ACH pursued connecting to the Minnesota's Health Information Exchange (HIE) in the facilities where it is the contracted provider and has it investigated the HIE's Admission, Discharge, Transfer (ADT) notification capabilities?. When ACH faults the requirements of the Larry R. Hill Medical Reform Act could it be seen as a tacit admission that the company might not have upgraded their systems to 21st century standards? (See COCHS’ CIO, Ben Butler’s paper in Perspectives In Health Information Management, Health Information Exchange between Jails and Their Communities: A Bridge That Is Needed under Healthcare Reform).

In 2023, in Olmsted County, ACH provided a "cocktail of mild withdrawal medications" to man who had been prescribed Suboxone in the community.The man was later found dead in his cell.

The Larry R. Hill Medical Reform Act which would require jails across Minnesota to provide incarcerated people their medications prescribed before they were in custody sailed ahead in the 2025 legislative session. But before it could go into effect, the new law got caught up in the courts when the Minnesota Sheriffs’ Association and Advanced Correctional Healthcare sued the state’s Department of Corrections to block its enforcement. However, Minnesota Court of Appeals ruled against the Sheriffs’ Association and ACH’s injunction to prevent the law from being enacted as the suit progressed. The amended law goes into effect Aug. 1.

Trinity Services Group/Food Poisoning

Editor's Comment: COCHS has not often included articles about food service providers in correctional facilities. However, the Trinity Services Group salmonella outbreak at the Broome County Jail has given us much to think about. We would suggest that proprietary correctional food service may suffer from many of the same structural problems that have long plagued proprietary correctional healthcare. As our subscribers know, following a death or other healthcare tragedy, one proprietary provider—Centurion, Wellpath, VitalCore, Wexford, ACH, or YesCare—is frequently replaced by another from the same relatively small pool of vendors. The article below suggests that a similar revolving door may exist with correctional food service providers. The difference appears to be that, instead of a medical tragedy, it takes a food poisoning outbreak to set the process in motion.

In 2018, Broome County terminated its contract with Aramark over concerns about the quality of the food it was providing and awarded the contract to Trinity Services Group, a move reportedly to save the county $1 million. Following the recent salmonella outbreak, Trinity is now out, and the county is once again seeking a food service provider through a competitive bidding process in which the contract will be awarded to the lowest qualified bidder. To our ears, this sounds remarkably similar to the revolving door of proprietary correctional healthcare providers.

A few additional observations are worth making. Trinity Services Group was reportedly fined a whopping $3,500 for an outbreak that hospitalized twelve people and sickened approximately 320 others. Is such a penalty likely to encourage stronger food safety practices in the future? Some readers might be skeptical.

Finally, there is the question of the county's reported $1 million savings. Was there really a savings once the costs associated with twelve hospitalizations, more than 300 illnesses, litigation, and the disruption caused by the outbreak are taken into account? Or are we witnessing what is often described as picking up pennies on the floor while dollars fly out the window?

The food service provider cited for violations tied to a salmonella outbreak at the Broome County jail will be fined. Broome County Health Department and the Broome County Sheriff's Office provided updates on the investigation into the salmonella outbreak including a fine for the food service provider. The health department found six critical violations during the preparation of the chicken salad served to inmates. The facility's food service provider, Trinity Services Group, is scheduled to attend a hearing for seven violations noted by the health department. As the process continues, Broome County Sheriff Fred Akshar is still looking at options for food service moving forward.

Texas Commission on Jail Standards

Editor's Comment: Are we beginning to see the practical consequences of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's opinion that deaths of detainees need not be investigated by the Texas Commission on Jail Standards if they occur outside a jail facility, such as during transport or while receiving treatment at a hospital?

Recently, we reported that Dallas County Sheriff Marian Brown had not reported the death of Julie Buelna, who died at Parkland Hospital after being critically injured while being detained. According to the executive director of the Texas Commission on Jail Standards, her death should have been classified as an in-custody death and reported accordingly.

Now a similar issue has surfaced in neighboring Tarrant County. Mark Greer, a detainee at the county jail, was transported to John Peter Smith Hospital, where he later died. According to news reports, Greer's family was informed that there would be no investigation because the death did not occur within the jail itself.

While it appears that some sheriffs may have taken advantage of the green light provided by Attorney General Ken Paxton's opinion to forgo reporting detainee deaths that occur outside the walls of their facilities, it is equally possible that such deaths have gone unreported for some time, whether they occurred inside or outside a jail.

In a Dallas Morning News article we included in the June 6 Weekly Update, the Texas Jail Project reported that it had identified 23 unreported jail deaths across the state since 2023.

The 78th Tarrant County Jail inmate since Sheriff Bill Waybourn was elected in 2017 has died. That makes 3 deaths in 4 days. Mack Greer’s death was the third. Greer, 49, was pronounced dead Thursday at John Peter Smith Hospital. The family was told the usual investigations would not be done because Greer was not in custody when he was pronounced dead.Less than one week before the first of the three deaths, Republican County Judge Tim O’Hare said the jail received a “glowing review” from the Texas Commissioner on Jail Standards.

Oklahoma County

Editor's Comment: We wish we could include a more positive article about the Oklahoma County Jail. Once again, the facility has failed an inspection. For subscribers who have not been following this story, our April 28 Follow Up provides a brief recap of the jail's long-running troubles.

The Oklahoma County jail has failed its latest surprise health inspection due to missed safety checks, unsanitary conditions and staffing shortages. Health inspections are conducted annually at all county lockups to ensure they’re in compliance with state laws and regulations. The Oklahoma County jail has failed a dozen consecutive inspections since 2020, according to records from the Oklahoma State Department of Health. Twice in 2024, the jail failed inspections automatically by refusing to let health inspectors enter the facility. Since 2020, at least 60 detainees have died while in the Oklahoma County jail’s custody. The detention center also had one of the highest numbers of reported suicides in the country between 2019 and 2023, according to incomplete federal data. Jail administrator Tim Kimery failed to provide suicide observation sheets for five detainees on suicide watch, health inspectors said in the report.

Request For Comments

ASAM is seeking input from diverse stakeholders on the standards for the Correctional Settings and Community Reentry Volume of the Fourth Edition of The ASAM Criteria®. Feedback received during the public comment period will be instrumental in refining the standards and decision rules of the Correctional Settings and Community Reentry Volume. The deadline to submit comments is August 31, 2026.

ICE

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk on Friday called for stronger independent oversight of the United States immigration detention system and investigations into all deaths in US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody. “Those responsible for violations of the law must be held to account, and the rights of the victims’ families to truth, justice and reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence must be upheld,” Mr. Türk said in a statement.

As the Trump administration increases the scale of its immigrant detention program, now up to 68,000 immigrants in custody, reports have surfaced of inhumane conditions and inadequate medical care at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facilities. Congress recently boosted funding for immigration enforcement by $70 billion over three years, through the end of President Donald Trump’s term. A recent report from the Department of Homeland Security’s internal watchdog found a detention center in Louisiana failed to ensure sanitary conditions, properly store perishable food, report use-of-force incidents and maintain medical records of detainees.

A Haitian asylum seeker arrived at a Vermont prison having been prescribed psychiatric medication weeks earlier, but prison healthcare providers and outside experts disagreed about the kind of treatment she needed while incarcerated in the state, according to testimony in a federal case that ended when a judge ordered her release.

BOP

A federal judge ordered the Bureau of Prisons to continue providing hormone medications to transgender inmates, rejecting, at least for now, the Trump administration’s decision to no longer provide such medical treatment for prisoners. Judge Royce C. Lamberth, of the Federal District Court for the District of Columbia, issued a preliminary injunction, finding that doubts the government has raised about hormone therapy were unlikely to satisfy a legal requirement that federal agencies offer a reasoned explanation for reversing existing policies.

Demitrius Manderfield, 29, stopped receiving monthly treatments for a rare blood disorder called sickle beta thalassemia in January, after prison officials accused him of trying to contact a healthcare worker assisting in his care. The discontinued procedure, red blood cell exchange, is used to remove the faulty, sickle-shaped cells and replace them with healthy ones that can more efficiently transport oxygen throughout the body. Relatives of Manderfield at the U.S. penitentiary in Terre Haute say they're worried he won’t survive to see his projected release date next month.

Juveniles

In 2024, six former residents — Blaise Chivers-King, Dylan Tolar, Charles “Rees” Karn, D.H., Haiden Willis and Koby Cranford — joined a lawsuit alleging abuse at the Wyoming Boys’ School, including extended periods of solitary confinement and physical harm. In the plaintiffs’ case alleging abuse at a state facility for delinquent boys features two video footage stills. In one, a boy cowers in the corner of a solitary confinement room. In the other, a boy is strapped to a restraint chair with a white mask over his head.

Studies

As a consequence of the dramatic expansion of incarceration in the last 50 years, a significant and growing portion of older adults in the U.S. have experienced incarceration. This study is based on an analysis of data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health. The study found significant demographic differences between older adults with histories of incarceration and those with none, consistent with what we know about the socioeconomic and racial disparities of incarceration. Compared to older adults with no prior incarceration, formerly incarcerated older adults were more likely to be Black and to report childhood poverty, childhood housing insecurity, lower educational attainment, and fair or poor self-rated health.

State Roundup

Alabama

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit affirmed a lower court’s ruling that Alabama’s mental health care for people in state prisons is constitutionally inadequate and rejected nearly all of the State’s objections to court orders requiring improvements in care. The decision comes in a lawsuit filed by Alabama prisoners with serious mental illness and the Alabama Disability Advocacy Program, who alleged that the Alabama Department of Corrections fails to provide adequate mental health care to people in state prisons. The Eleventh Circuit flatly rejected ADOC’s attacks on the district court’s “thorough and commendable” determination that ADOC’s mental health care system violates the Eighth Amendment.

California

A bill to tighten California’s rules on mental health diversion — a process that allows certain criminal defendants to avoid prison for arrests linked to mental illness — is now on the verge of being signed into law by Gov. Gavin Newsom. Assembly Bill 46, authored by Stephanie Nguyen (D-Elk Grove), gives judges much wider discretion to decide whether a defendant should be eligible for diversion. Under the current law, judges must presume mental illness was a factor if a defendant with a legitimate diagnosis seeks diversion.

Colorado

According to the Colorado Division of Criminal Justice, jails put mentally ill and other vulnerable people in solitary for more than 15 days on at least 315 occasions between July 2023, when the reforms took effect, and March 2025, the most recent period for which statewide data was available. Since jails only need court approval once they exceed 15 days within a 30-day period, shorter periods of isolation or repeated stays separated by brief breaks may not appear in court records.

Connecticut

Connecticut prison inmate J’Allen Jones was suffering a mental health crisis in 2018 when correctional officers struck him multiple times, stripped him naked, put a spit bag over his head and sprayed pepper spray at his face shortly before he died. Video of the series of events was released by a state judge in Hartford overseeing Jones’ family’s lawsuit against eight officers and a prison nurse, following a yearslong legal battle and after both sides agreed to certain redactions. The Department of Correction had sought to keep it sealed since 2019, saying in part that its release could present security problems because it shows the physical layout of the prison and staffing patterns.

Officials are investigating the death of an incarcerated man at the Bridgeport Correctional Center this week, the 13th person to die in Department of Correction custody so far this year. Several of the deaths – all men – were people who had not been convicted of a crime but were awaiting their next court date. Some were awaiting sentencing; others died from medical complications or what a medical examiner ruled to be natural causes.

Michigan

Michelle Floyd, the warden of the state’s only women’s prison, has gone on a temporary personal leave amid recent controversies over inmate deaths at the facility. Michigan Department of Corrections (MDOC) spokesman Lucas Verran confirmed that Warden Jeremy Howard has gone on a temporary personal leave from the Huron Valley Correctional Facility. The news comes as the MDOC continues to investigate three inmate deaths that have occurred at Huron Valley since May 13, prompting concerns about the conditions at the prison and outrage from community members.

Missouri

A St. Louis County bill to allocate more than $2.8 million toward health care at its jail and juvenile detention center has been delayed. Jail and Health Department officials said that if the funding isn’t passed, it would mean changes including reducing access to medications, stopping opioid treatments and having more police officers drive detainees to medical screenings.

After a lot of contentious back-and-forth between the St. Louis County Council and officials in the county’s Department of Public Health, the council on Wednesday approved appropriating $3 million for medical services at the St. Louis County Justice Center. Since May, county health officials have publicly warned that roughly 1,200 detainees at the jail might experience delays or lose health care altogether if the county council does not approve funding for at least 23 nurses and other contracted medical staff by June 30.

New York

This article from Spectrum News provides a series of individual accounts illustrating the healthcare challenges faced by incarcerated people in the New York State prison system. As the title suggests, delayed access to healthcare is a recurring theme throughout the article. Of particular interest are the mortality charts accompanying the report. One chart breaks down the locations within correctional facilities where deaths have occurred, while another examines deaths by the security level of the facility. Together, the charts provide additional context for understanding mortality patterns within the New York State prison system.

North Carolina

As temperatures soar above 100 degrees, North Carolina’s prison system says most of its facilities now have air conditioning. The Department of Adult Correction promised to have AC in all prisons by the end of this year. But the agency says it will miss that goal. 90 percent of the state's prison beds are now air conditioned, according to apress release from the Department of Adult Corrections (DAC). The state has been working to install or repair cooling units since 2022. In some cases, inmates have helped with the work as part of a correction apprenticeship program. DAC originally said all prisons would have access to cool air by the end of 2026.

Oklahoma

Oklahoma Department of Corrections is proud to announce that it will begin assessing female inmates using the Women’s Risk Needs Assessment, an evidence-based instrument to provide individualized case plans and treatment options. For many women, addressing the underlying factors that contributed to incarceration is the first step toward breaking the cycle of recidivism. For decades, every inmate, regardless of gender, has been assessed with the same tool. However, research shows that women often enter prison with different life experiences than men, including higher rates of trauma, abuse, mental health challenges and substance use disorders.

Oregon

Jenkins-Millage is part of a group of prisoners currently in solitary confinement who are challenging the conditions of their incarceration. In a class-action lawsuit filed in Marion County Circuit Court, they argue the state’s prison system is violating the Oregon Constitution, which prohibits the “harsh, degrading, or dehumanizing treatment of prisoners.” Data published by the agency shows a recent upward trend of adults in custody held inside Disciplinary Segregation Units. The most current data shows as of May 1, 561 prisoners were held in those units, nearly the highest during the past two years.

Vermont

After years of complaints from prison staff and incarcerated people about sweltering summer conditions, Vermont has approved its largest investment in cooling state correctional facilities in recent years. Lawmakers agreed to spend nearly $10.5 million to install prison cooling systems, which appears to be more money than the state put toward the project in the last four years combined.

Washington State

In 2008, Whatcom County passed the behavioral health sales tax. For every $10 spent, one penny goes into the Behavioral Health Fund. For the past 15 years, this money has helped fund programs that support our most vulnerable neighbors. Its priorities are to fill gaps in mental and behavioral healthcare, improve public safety, and treat the root causes of behavioral health challenges. In addition to the sales tax money, the fund also includes state and federal grants for mental and behavioral health programs.

Private Prisons

Jaleen Anderson was arrested March 3, 2024, in Houston. Through a contract with LaSalle, Harris County shipped Anderson to LaSalle Correctional Center in Olla, Louisiana ]to be housed as he awaited trial. During his detention at the LaSalle facility images from the jail’s security footage show Anderson alone and at times unresponsive on the cell floor. At one point, he clutched the arm of a guard who entered to assist him and curled into a ball. Anderson’s family claims the facility’s nurse declined, saying: “We don’t send people to the hospital for seizures.” Two hours later was dead. LaSalle’s attorneys deny the companies named in the suit — LaSalle Correctional Center, L.L.C., LaSalle Corrections, L.L.C. and LaSalle Management Company, L.L.C. — bear responsibility for the man’s death. LaSalle’s attorney argues the cases involving other LaSalle prisons are irrelevant to the issue of the adequacy of medical policies because each of those facilities are registered to different LLCs.

Correctional Healthcare Vendors

Wellpath

During a regular meeting of the Nevada County Board of Supervisors this week, County Counsel stated that there are no reportable actions regarding existing litigation between Deborah Wagner and Wellpath. Wellpath was contracted by the Nevada County’s Sheriff’s Office (NCSO) for its services at the jail until it filed for bankruptcy in 2025. Wagner alleges her supervisor and an NCSO captain conspired to illegally terminate her employment while she was assigned to provide nursing care at the jail. Wagner contends she was fired after repeatedly reporting “unsafe conditions for inmates/patients, including the systematic misapplication of medication.” Poor conditions extended to the nursing staff, according to Wagner’s claims in the same court document, including “harassment from employees towards her directly, favoritism towards employees based on her supervisor's sexual and romantic interests, and an overall environment of severe and pervasive harassment.” Wellpath is no longer the provider at the jail.

Centurion

Despite public scrutiny and complaints from inmates and their attorneys, the Indiana Department of Correction has renewed its contract with Centurion its health services provider for up to another year. In mid-March, shortly before the state’s contract with the Virginia-based private medical provider was set to end, the Department of Correction moved to extend the contract for up to one year, agreeing to pay the company an additional $213 million. The latest extension gives the Department of Correction the ability to terminate the agreement sooner, and an internal email indicates that the agency will be exploring other options — again. According to the Department of Administration letter, the state anticipates publishing a new correctional health care RFP around the beginning of July.

Happy 4th of July!
The Next Weekly Update Will Be Sent On July 14