COVID-19 in Prisons: State Health Care Contracting and the Pandemic Behind Bars

The COVID-19 pandemic has had far-reaching consequences, resulting in millions of infections and deaths worldwide. Given the vast impact of the virus and how it has highlighted health care access/treatment concerns within the general public, this study examined how these issues specifically impacted COVID-19 cases and deaths among incarcerated individuals. In particular, we examined how the method of medical care delivery (i.e., provided by correctional versus contracted practitioners) impacted the reported rates of COVID-19 cases/deaths within correctional institutions. Findings indicated that COVID-19 diagnosis and mortality rates were significantly lower in states where at least some health care for incarcerated individuals was directly provided by correctional employees. We offer various explanations for these findings while also highlighting potential key reporting differences between these two forms of correctional health care delivery.