Issue Area
Physical and Mental Health
The Issue
The prevalence of chronic illnesses and communicable diseases among people in jail and prison is far greater than among other people of comparable ages. Significant illnesses afflicting corrections populations include coronary artery disease, hypertension, diabetes, asthma, chronic lung disease, HIV infection, and hepatitis B and C, among others. Individuals in this population, when not incarcerated, are often among the hardest for the health system to identify, in part because the criminal justice system and health system rarely collaborate to discuss their shared population.
Furthermore, the incidence of serious mental illnesses, such as schizophrenia, major depression, bipolar disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder, is two to four times higher among prisoners than it is among those in the general population. Generally, mental health services - both in prison and in the community after release - are limited and insufficient to meet the growing need.
Challenges
- Inconsistent and ineffective screening and identification of prisoners for health and/or mental health disorders
- Narrow focus on emergency treatment needs of people who are incarcerated rather than their long-term health and public health generally
- Compartmentalized, uncoordinated treatment of co-occurring disorders, particularly substance abuse and mental illness
- Inadequate communication and cooperation between correctional health officials and community service providers
- Limited capacity of existing community-based services and general reluctance of providers to serve people with criminal records
- Delivery of services and use of medications that do not reflect the most current, evidence-based practices
- Shortages of qualified health care professionals in prison and jail, and high cost of medications
Related Justice Center Project
Improving Access to Federal Benefits
As coordinators of both the Reentry Policy Council and the Criminal Justice / Mental Health Consensus Project, the Justice Center has been charged by Council of State Governments members to develop resources to educate and engage relevant policymakers and practitioners in addressing access to SSI/SSDI and Medicaid, and to promote a coherent, consistent message on this issue among policymakers from different perspectives and systems.