Lawmakers are considering a broader bill designed to address health care and nutrition in Connecticut prisons after several government reports highlighted problems with drug distribution, staffing levels, food quality and medical care at correctional facilities.
Rep. Steve Staffstrom of Bridgeport said House Bill 5567 was created after concerns were raised by lawmakers in January about a Department of Corrections audit that found widespread issues in the prison system. He said lawmakers are trying to address “what really is a crisis in inmate medical care in our state.”
The bill also follows a recent state corrections ombudsman report detailing unsanitary living conditions, lack of nutritious meals, delays in essential medical care and staff shortages that routinely confine inmates to their cells.
It will be heard before the Legislature’s Judiciary Committee in Hartford on Wednesday.
HB 5567 would provide the corrections ombudsman with two additional positions in his office – a patient advocate, with at least five years of experience in senior health care leadership, and a mental health care clinic.
Corrections Ombudsman Dee Von Ward said Tuesday that a mental health clinic was especially needed in his office. He said the DOC was having trouble with inmates getting medication either prescribed outside the prison or at another correctional facility.
“Someone is in one facility, they’re prescribed a certain drug, and then they come to this other facility, and then they’re cut off … and there’s no one in my office who’s going to challenge that idea because they’re not accredited,” Ward said. Ward said.
The legislation would “allow my office to actually have someone who can objectively look at these charts and be able to speak with a certain level of authority when they look at these charts and make these recommendations.”
Under the bill, the Department of Corrections would also be required to develop an online system that would allow inmates to request medical care and access their health records electronically. If a detained person needs a specific medical procedure, they cannot be refused for “non-clinical reasons” under the law.
A number of amendments to the distribution of medicines are also included in the bill. It would require the department to create a list of “time-critical” drugs and adopt protocols for how those drugs will be dispensed during specific time windows during the lockdown. The department will also be tasked with developing a pilot program so people with chronic conditions can manage their medications.
The department will be given a quarterly “medical scorecard” showing its staffing levels, vacancies, use of temporary staff and the number of people who have been laid off or suspended. It will also create a “Staffing Contingency Plan” for operations when staffing falls below certain levels.
A state audit report released in July, which reviewed the years 2022 and 2023, found that the DOC administered drugs to inmates late — or, in some cases, didn’t administer them at all. A review of drugs administered to 10 people showed delays about 10% of the time.
In an effort to retain medical workers, the bill would authorize a student loan repayment program for nurses who work in the Department of Corrections. Nurses can get up to $5,000 a year in student loan forgiveness for up to $20,000.
Sen. John Castle, R-Enfield, one of the top Republicans on the Judiciary Committee, said he’s trying to keep an open mind before the public hearing but he wants to see incarcerated people get better health care services.
“In general, I fully support efforts to improve the health care inmates receive in our facilities,” Castle wrote in a statement. “We’ve all seen stories and cases of subpar care or no care being provided to these individuals that the state is responsible for looking after.”
nutrition
Apart from medical care, the food-deprived men and women are given another zero.
It would require the Office of the Corrections Ombudsman to hire someone to audit the department’s food and nutrition program. The inspector will be tasked with checking the nutritional value of the food and whether people with limited diets have access to special foods.
Sen. Gary Winfield, D-New Haven, said nutrition is a central part of health care.
“What we’re really saying is … we want healthy people in our care to come back [into the community]Winfield said.
The ombudsman has reported many complaints of mold and rat droppings in food, spoiled milk, and food that has hardened or been damaged by freezer burn, making it “barely edible.” Prisoners also said the food was heavy in carbohydrates and highly processed, leaving few options for people with dietary restrictions.
Ward said a nutritional analysis of the department’s menus in 2024 found the daily intake of salt in food to be about 3,400 milligrams — nearly 1,000 milligrams more than recommended. He noted that medical conditions such as high blood pressure and diabetes are associated with a high-sodium diet.
Ward said he wants to look at the cost of providing food in state prisons and the possibility of improving the diet that male and female inmates receive, with fresh vegetables, more protein and less salt.
“We pay all this money, and then if you go to a correctional facility every day, you’re just throwing away a lot of food, because a lot of people don’t think it’s edible,” he said.
He suggested exploring partnerships with local chefs who could help create better food options. He said he wants to see healthier options for purchase through the commissary, including bottled water.
Out of control
The bill includes other recommendations regarding employee training, a concern that was also raised in the state auditor’s report.
The bill would require DOC employees to undergo four to eight hours of annual training on mental health issues, including trauma-informed exercises. Employees should also be trained in open bias, volatility and crisis prevention.
It will also be tasked with reporting use-of-force incidents, employee injuries and inmates, and complaints about employee behavior to the department.
Ward said that while he generally supported data collection and more oversight of the department, he felt that measures were needed to directly address problems that have long been reported — and sometimes resulted in judgments with payouts of more than $1 million to family members of formerly incarcerated people.
This department has been providing health services to prisoners since mid-2018. Previously, University of Connecticut Managed Health Care was responsible for providing health care services, until lawmakers and advocacy groups — as well as a number of lawsuits — expressed concerns about the quality of care provided.
But concerns about the quality of health care are resurfacing.
“We know by and large that medical care at DOC is broken,” Ward said. “How are we going to fix this, prevent this terrible outcome, prevent the millions of dollars we’re spending in litigation costs and settlements?” he said. Ward suggested creating a task force, including health care system leaders and government officials, to find solutions.
The Department of Corrections declined to comment on the law, instead referring questions to the Office of Policy and Management. OPM spokesman Chris Colleby said in a statement that Gov. Ned Lamont’s administration is in favor of a “new approach to health care” for people incarcerated in the state.
“About 5,000 people enter and leave state correctional facilities each year, many with significant medical needs. Because most people only spend a short time in custody, it’s important to ensure that their care is tailored before, during and after incarceration,” Colleby said.
According to Colby, the state faced financial challenges due to federal Medicaid laws that prohibit Medicaid from being used to cover care for incarcerated people. But he added that the state is “taking steps to improve care, increase accountability, and strengthen relationships with community providers.”
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