Arizona Prisons Ordered to Provide Better Health Care to Inmates

Federal Judge Roslyn Silver issued a 64-page order to the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation, and Reentry with new requirements in an effort to bring medical care and mental health care up to constitutional standards for inmates.

Judge Silver took issue with ADCRR and their contracted health care providers in Monday's court filing, writing that prison officials "almost immediately failed to perform those obligations" under an earlier settlement and "kept inaccurate records and misinterpreted the settlement’s requirements to their advantage."

The class-action lawsuit, Jensen v. Shinn, began more than a decade ago to ensure incarcerated persons in Arizona's prisons receive the basic health care and minimally adequate conditions entitled to under the US Constitution. "We hope that with this powerful order, Arizona officials will finally comply with the Constitution, abide by the rule of law, and respect the rights and dignity of the thousands of people in their custody," said David Fahl, director of the ACLU National Prison Project. "We are grateful to our clients; what they have had to endure is unconsionable. This landmark order is the result of their bravery and testimony."

The order of remediation requires:

• Arizona state prisons ensure all healthcare is clinically appropriate
• Contracted prison healthcare providers document all aspects of care and provide follow-up care in a clinically appropriate timeframe
• Enough correctional officers to be available to assist and transport incarcerated persons for medical needs
• Sufficient space, equipment and supplies for health care regardless of an incarcerated person's housing assignment
• "Man down" bags and AED's in working order, including daily checks, to provide emergency care
• Prison officials to identify all significant health care and custody errors after the death of an incarcerated person
• Minimum staffing for mental health providers and requirements for timely appoinments
• Additional changes, including more staffing, to provide for welfare of incarcerated persons who are confined to their cells for 22+ hours a day.

Read the ACLU press release regarding this lawsuit at their website.