Thousands of convicts have the deadly infectious disease, but only the sickest qualify for medicines because they are so expensive.
News Story (Florida)
Peter Loftus, Gary Fields
Wall Street Journal (WSJ)
September 12, 2016
READ THE FULL STORY HERE
Tags: Health Care, Prisoners Rights
Organizations mentioned/involved: Pennsylvania Institutional Law Project
News Story (Florida)
Peter Loftus, Gary Fields
Wall Street Journal (WSJ)
September 12, 2016
READ THE FULL STORY HERE
Tags: Health Care, Prisoners Rights
Organizations mentioned/involved: Pennsylvania Institutional Law Project
DETAILS
Pennsylvania’s corrections department has given the drugs to inmates at high risk of developing liver problems and with low blood-platelet levels. Mr. Maldonado isn’t among them, because his disease isn’t advanced enough to meet the department’s criteria, and he has sued seeking treatment.
In a March court filing, the department said treating the state’s estimated 7,000 infected inmates would cost about $600 million, which “would effectively cripple the Department from a budgetary standpoint” and squeeze other medical care and security needs. A spokeswoman declined to comment on Mr. Maldonado’s case.