Latest KFF Health News Stories
Biking Behind Bars: Female Inmates Battle Weight Gain
Women in prison often eat to relieve stress or boredom. The resulting weight gain can make other physical and emotional problems worse. In one prison, spinning helps keep the pounds and rage at bay.
Prisons And Jails Forcing Inmates To Cover Some Medical Care Costs
Although the government is responsible for providing health services to people in jail, prisoners are still often expected to pay for the treatment.
When Prisons Need To Be More Like Nursing Homes
By 2030, nearly one-third of all inmates will be over 55, the ACLU says, and caring for aged prisoners often costs twice as much as caring for younger ones. Some states – New York, California and Connecticut — are confronting the problem, however, with innovative programs meant to improve care and save money.
Study Predicts Huge Toll Of Hepatitis C Drugs On California Budget
Highly effective drugs for Hepatitis C patients in California’s Medicaid program, prisons and hospitals could cost the state billions, an insurance-industry sponsored study found.
Illinois Gov.’s Proposed Cuts To Mental Health Care Could Raise Costs, Critics Say
Gov. Bruce Rauner’s budget plan to reduce funds for psychiatry, housing programs for the homeless and care coordinators for the mentally ill could send people to hospitals, nursing homes and jails where treatment costs are higher, providers say.
Wrestling With A Texas County’s Mental Health System
Strong leadership and common-sense budgeting created a model mental health care system in San Antonio.
For Aging Inmates, Care Outside Prison Walls
As the number of elderly inmates needing long-term care rises, some states are looking for alternatives beyond prison walls.
For Women Just Out Of Jail, Health Care Could Be Key To Better Life
Sheriff in San Francisco wants to make sure the 30,000 prisoners who come through the jail system every year have health insurance on the day they’re released.
Leaving Jail Doesn’t Have To Mean Losing Health Care
California is among 25 states to open Medicaid to childless adults, including thousands of ex-offenders. Covering this group is expected to save money and perhaps reduce recidivism.
By The Numbers: Mental Illness Behind Bars
There are now three times more people with serious mental illness incarcerated in the United States than in hospitals, and the types of behavioral and mental health problems among inmates are becoming more severe.
Report: Jails House 10 Times More Mentally Ill Than State Hospitals
In 44 states and the District of Columbia, at least one prison or jail holds more people with serious mental illnesses than the largest state psychiatric hospital, according to a report released Tuesday by the Treatment Advocacy Center and the National Sheriffs’ Association. Across the country, an estimated 356,268 people with mental illnesses including bipolar […]
Medicaid Expansion To Cover Many Former Prisoners
The Department of Justice estimates former inmates and detainees will comprise about 35 percent of the people who will qualify for Medicaid coverage in the states expanding their programs.
Schizophrenia, Suicide And One Family’s Anguish
Homer Bell was 54 years old when he committed suicide in April in a very public way — he laid down in front of a bus in his hometown of Hartford, Conn. It was the culmination of three decades of suffering endured by Bell and his family because of his illness, schizophrenia. Harold Schwartz, the […]
Medicaid Expansion Will Open Doors To Care for Ex-Convicts
Extending benefits to ex-offenders will provide health coverage to a group that is generally in worse health than the overall population. Researchers say it could also keep some from sliding back into crime.
Oklahoma Looks for Ways to Keep Mentally Ill Ex-offenders Out of Prison
Oklahoma prisoners with mental illnesses face a myriad of obstacles in rejoining society, but a state program seeks to reintroduce them to society, keep them on medication and save them from returning to prison.
Greg Millett: New HIV Infections Are Down, But ‘Much More’ To Be Done
AIDS In 2012: Senior policy advisor in the Office of National AIDS Policy tells Joanne Silberner the president’s National HIV/AIDS Strategy has improved coordination among federal agencies and that the 2010 health law will improve access to care for those living with HIV/AIDS.
States Efforts To Outsource Prison Health Care Come Under Scrutiny
The cost cutting measures have raised concerns among state unions and prisoners’ rights groups.
Unknowns In Sports Medicine; Shackling Pregnant Prisoners
Every week, reporter Jessica Marcy selects interesting reading from around the Web. The New York Times: As Sports Medicine Surges, Hope And Hype Outpace Proven Treatments Medical experts say (that) multiple futile treatments is all too familiar and points to growing problems in sports medicine, a medical subspecialty that has been experiencing explosive growth. … […]
Nation’s Jails Struggle With Mentally Ill Prisoners
More Americans receive mental health treatment in prisons and jails than in hospitals or treatment centers, yet the criminal justice system was never built to handle people with mental illnesses. A judge in Miami-Dade County is trying to prevent those with mental illnesses who have committed minor crimes from ending up in jail.
