Note: Please be advised that as things are changing quickly during this pandemic, the information available on the conditions inside will continue to grow exponentially. It is and has been increasingly difficult to keep up with the developments and information. Nevertheless, the message is clear: thousands of lives are at risk. This brief commentary on the great risk looming over our correctional facilities urges the need to act immediately and transparently to ensure the safety of one of our most vulnerable populations.<\/p>\n
This story originally appeared in QC Voices, a collaborative publication featuring writers from Queens College in New York City. Check them out here<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n As of April 07, Chicago’s \u00a0Cook County Facility has become the top hotspot for the virus in the U.S<\/a>. According to data\u00a0compiled by The New York Times<\/a>, the jail in Chicago is now the nation\u2019s largest-known source of coronavirus infections. Why is this a problem? More importantly, why should we care about what occurs inside these institutions? The short answer to these questions is this: correctional health\u00a0is<\/em>\u00a0public health.<\/p>\n What happens inside will\u00a0inevitably<\/em>\u00a0influence what happens outside. Any outbreak within our jails and prisons can cascade into the community. Once COVID-19 spreads throughout a facility, the burden of caring for these sick individuals will necessarily shift to local community medical facilities. Large numbers of seriously ill incarcerated individuals would strain the already taxed hospitals, increasing the morbidity and mortality of all people in NY.<\/p>\n After spending seven years in New York\u2019s jails and prisons, I am all too aware that the inadequate healthcare and hygiene in correctional facilities create optimal conditions for an infectious disease outbreak. During my time at\u00a0Bedford Hills<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Taconic<\/a>, waiting days or weeks to have my sick-call slip addressed by a doctor was nothing out of the ordinary. I would first have to see a nurse who would determine whether I needed to see a doctor another week from then. Access to cleaning supplies were limited, leaving us to rely on our peers to acquire larger quantities of stolen bleach. With these dynamics at play, should any be surprised to learn that many inmates are currently self-manufacturing sanitizer to clean phones with diluted soap and shampoo that may afford them little to no protection against the virus? Sanitizers remain inaccessible to most inmates due to its high alcohol content.\u00a0 To what extent can inmates stay healthy and keep their living quarters clean under such conditions during this pandemic if it is hard to do so under normal conditions?<\/p>\n This post follows the first reported death of an in inmate in NYC. \u00a0As of April 08, “more than 700 people have tested positive for coronavirus on Rikers Island, including over 440 staff.<\/a>” At least\u00a0seven correction officers have died<\/a>\u00a0as well. Across NYS, at least two inmates, two parolees and a civilian have died.\u00a0\u00a0A<\/u>t\u00a0least 55 inmates have contracted the virus<\/a>.<\/p>\n Will these numbers finally force us to pick up pace in releasing more inmates? The spread of the novel coronavirus is now accelerating within our jails and prisons across the nation. In fact, as of April 07, the infection rate inside Rikers Island<\/a> was reported to have been at 6.59 percent, considerably higher than the infection rate of New York City, 0.89 percent. As expected in confined spaces, rapid spread of the virus is much more pronounced for inside the jail than outside.<\/p>\n The number of individuals testing positive for coronavirus has surged in the past two weeks but New York’s strategy for battling a potentially disastrous outbreak within our jails and prisons has lagged far behind. In fact, a\u00a0New York judge has only very recently mandated all correction officers to receive nonsurgical masks and rapid COVID-19 tests before every shift<\/a>. This decision came on the heels of a lawsuit filed against the city by the Correction Officers’ Benevolent Association. Considering that it is far less likely that an inmate would bring coronavirus into a facility than would the daily ingress and egress of staff, this delay to protect inmates is rather disturbing.<\/p>\n Despite the vulnerability of this population, news coverage on jail and prison conditions remain minimal.<\/p>\n In fact, one of the first lengthy dialogues on COVID-19 and NY’s inmates was entirely devoted to quelling public panic about a statewide shortage of sanitizer. On March 9th, Governor Cuomo readily announced that\u00a0NYS inmates were mass producing sanitizer<\/a>\u00a0for the state as a response to this shortage. Needless to say, his attempt to comfort the public was devoid of any reassurances about our inmates’ health. There was comparable silence on the details of the protective measures for inmates as we learned that\u00a0inmates at Rikers Island were being offered $6.00 an hour and PPE to dig mass graves on Hart Island<\/a>.<\/p>\n Now, it should seem that at a time of panic, pressure, and uncertainty, receiving more transparency from our leaders would be common sense. We need to know more than just how our loved ones inside are being exploited to meet the needs of the pandemic. Visitation bans across all facilities within NY makes it more pressing necessary for the news to keep us updates and informed about preventive and mitigating measures being taken inside. The following are some of the questions that need addressing.<\/p>\n Naturally,\u00a0 questions about the public safety implications of a large scale release of inmates have also surfaced. Questions about whether those released will commit crimes are valid; however, they are not the most pressing at the moment.<\/p>\n At Rikers Island, a woman named Elisa expresses her concerns, illuminating the life-or-death situation inmates are facing behind bars.\u00a0According to\u00a0The New York Daily News<\/em>, Elisa was required to strip the bed of an inmate who had tested positive for the novel coronavirus.\u00a0<\/a>\u00a0Elisa, who has AIDS, was required to do so without gloves or mask, despite her immunocompromised status. Furthermore, her lawyer’s request for her release\u00a0and a slew of other secure alternate release were denied by the Manhattan District Attorney\u2019s. Despite her low security risk and preexisting conditions, the Manhattan District Attorney’s office argued that it could not consent to her bail because she was already sentenced to state prison time. Like Elisa, scores of high-risk inmates are confronting the reality that they may die in prison.<\/p>\n At the same time. releasing only those at risk of complications from the novel coronavirus will only have a minor effect on spread of the illness in the close quarters of jails and prisons.\u00a0All<\/em>\u00a0inmates remain vulnerable by virtue of their environment.<\/p>\n<\/h4>\n
Correctional Facilities Create Optimal Conditions for an Infectious Disease Outbreak<\/h4>\n
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Spread of the novel coronavirus is now accelerating within our jails and prisons<\/h4>\n
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Transparency breeds trust<\/h4>\n
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Should we let high-risk inmates die?<\/h4>\n
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Social distancing nearly impossible in correctional facilities<\/h4>\n