Health and Health Care in the Nation's Prisons Issues, Challenges, and Policies

The U.S. correctional system is facing an urgent crisis in how to meet the health care needs of its prisoners. As the number of inmates in correctional facilities increases, prisons struggle to adequately address health care needs in a financially feasible way. Many prisoners enter the system with medical problems that have gone unmet, and the toxic environments inside the prisons further compromise their health, causing serious problems both within the prisons themselves and in society as a whole when the prisoners are released. Health and Health Care in the Nation's Prisons presents a comprehensive and up-to-date assessment of the health care challenges facing today's prisons along with concrete recommendations for change.

Denise Humm-Delgado is associate professor of social work at the Simmone School of Social Work. Melvin Delgado is professor of social work and chair of macropractice at Boston University School of Social Work.