JEFFERSON CITY — An advocacy group for prison inmates in Missouri is raising alarms about medical care in the state’s 20 correctional facilities.
, a nonprofit organization advocating for humane treatment and improved conditions at Missouri’s correctional facilities, issued a statement Thursday expressing concern about an “alarming decline in health care services within the Missouri Department of Corrections facilities.â€
Based on reports from inmates and their representatives, including families, the state’s private health care provider, Centurion Health, has faced staffing shortages that have led to a drop in services for the estimated 23,000 offenders.
As an effect of a shortage of nurses and other medical providers, the company has conducted mass sick calls in the prison gym, the organization said.
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“This practice raises serious privacy concerns among residents, who are uncomfortable discussing their health issues in a public setting,†the report noted.
In addition, the group said inmates have been forced to wait months to see a health care provider or undergo testing. There also have been multiple reports of residents being denied medical care.
“The current state of health care in our prisons is unacceptable and endangers the lives of countless individuals. We demand swift and decisive action to rectify these issues,†said Lori Curry, executive director of Missouri Prison Reform.
Karen Pojmann acknowledged that Centurion is facing challenges.
“There is a nationwide health care staffing shortage, and Centurion definitely is affected by this trend, and consequently, yes, there are open health care staff positions in some of our facilities,†Pojmann said.
In 2022, while the COVID-19 pandemic was raging, officials issued an emergency rule designed to address a shortage of health care workers in the prison system.
The rule change allowed certain advanced care nurses more latitude to practice without the direct oversight of a physician.
At the time, nurse practitioners could not practice outside of a 75-mile radius of their attending doctor. The rule change extended that limit to 200 miles for those working in prisons.
Centurion, a former subsidiary of Missouri-based health care giant Centene, won the state contract to provide prison medical care in 2021 following a legal battle with the state’s longtime vendor, Corizon.
Since then, the company has been paid more than $450 million by taxpayers.
The company provides health care to inmates in 15 states, affecting nearly 275,000 individuals in more than 325 facilities.
The company’s contract could be worth more than $1.4 billion if the state exercises all of its options over a 10-year period.
Pojmann referred further questions to Centurion, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Centurion has faced legal action in other states. The American Civil Liberties Union sued Delaware last year in federal court alleging “unlawful and unconstitutional delays and denials of treatment.â€
In Arizona, the company was part of a settlement in a wrongful death suit involving an inmate.
Curry said the organization wants to see the Department of Corrections take steps to address the problems.
“Residents deserve dignified and effective medical care, and the systemic failures we are witnessing must be addressed immediately to prevent further harm,†Curry said.
(Updated at 4:38 p.m., June 6, 2024 to note Centurion is a former subsidiary of Centene.)