NCJ Number
133498
Journal
Journal of Prison and Jail Health Volume: 9 Issue: 2 Dated: (1990) Pages: 105-133
Date Published
1990
Length
16 pages
Annotation
The National Commission on Correctional Health Care (NCCHC) conducted a survey of the 50 State correctional systems and the Federal Bureau of Prisons (FBP) in the spring of 1990 to determine how much each spent on health services for prisoners.
Abstract
The findings of the NCCHC survey revealed a dramatic increase in the cost of providing health care to prisoners in recent years due to both an increase in the extent of services and in the cost of health care generally. Total Department of Corrections expenditures for the 47 jurisdictions reporting ranged from a low of $12 million in Maine to a high of almost $1.6 billion in California; the mean DOC expenditure totaled almost $258 million. The annual health cost per inmate varied significantly, ranging from an average of $787 per inmate spent annually on health services in South Dakota to the $3,381 spent for each inmate's health services in Alaska. To reduce costs, DOCs should give careful consideration to implementing a number of managed care techniques as well as other cost control strategies which have applicability for correctional health. 9 notes, 4 tables, 6 references, and 1 appendix