In the past 50 years, the way health care is financed has changed, with private payers and public insurance paying for more care. This interactive graphic shows who paid for the nation’s health care and how much it cost.
great info-graphic, must share!
| From Corrections.com read the whole article here. |
| By John Dewar Gleissner, Esq Published: 07/07/2014 |
 People who study incarceration in the United States invariably reach the conclusion that something must be done. Mass incarceration today is out of control, way too expensive, counterproductive, a social disaster, a trend that is clearly weakening America. Our correctional population of 7.3 million Americans cycles in and out of prison, forms a pariah class, destroys families and simply does not cause crime to decrease enough to justify the financial and social costs. Both political wings blame the other wing: Liberals blame race and class discrimination, the War on Drugs, mandatory sentences and conservative “law and order” politicians. Conservatives blame government programs, moral relativism, a rejection of religion, the defining of deviancy downward and activist judges.Running American prison systems is an extremely difficult job. Any softening of prison life is unpopular with our punitive-minded electorate. The public demands that prison life be a worse lifestyle than the lowest free classes enjoy. Early release is politically unpalatable. Overcrowding makes everything worse. Correctional costs are a least-favored budget item. With aging trends, medical expenses in prison are on the rise. Solitary confinement, gang activities and Death Row all add expense. Federal courts through the years step in when conditions became horrendous.
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By Courtney M. Fowler.
With most of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) having taken effect nationwide in January, there are still many questions about how the new law will impact some formerly hard-to-reach Americans. One demographic in particular that’s being targeted more than ever is the prison population, which includes both current inmates and those who’ve been recently released.
“We know, based on the research, that the prison population is at a significantly higher risk of infectious diseases and more likely to be suffering with substance abuse and mental health issues,” said Mia Bird, Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) research fellow who lead a recent PPIC event in Sacramento to discuss the importance of ensuring that inmates are covered both before and after their prison stays.
“So despite the difficulties of reaching this group because they don’t have access to standard ways of getting coverage, it remains extremely important,” said Bird.
American Journal of Public Health: Solitary Confinement and Risk of Self-Harm Among Jail Inmates
Listen to full story from NW new network (NPR)
Washington’s prison system has announced a major policy change when it comes to inmates who harm themselves. The Department of Corrections said Thursday that it will no longer sanction inmates for cutting or other acts of self-injury.
Self-harm is associated with borderline personality disorder and other mental health conditions. Scott Frakes, Washington’s deputy prison director, said he’s seen it firsthand and it can be gruesome.
Until now, Washington inmates who hurt themselves were subject to discipline. Those violations could lead to segregation from other inmates and a loss of time off for good behavior.
Complete Article found on Essential of Correctional Nursing
July 3, 2014 by Catherine Knox
Last week’s post described the epidemic of prescription drug abuse in the United States and the impact on the nation’s jails and prisons. This week we return to the same subject but focus on the problem of prescription drug diversion during incarceration. There are many more medications available and appropriate to be used in treatment today than when I started in nursing 40 years ago. Just to illustrate there were an average of 13 prescriptions written in 2011 for every person in the United States. At one of the jails I am familiar with an average of 24 prescriptions per inmate are filled each month.
