NCJ Number
137589
Date Published
1991
Length
45 pages
Annotation
This analysis of issues facing the nation and its Federal, State, and local correctional facilities in their management of detainees and inmates with AIDS and other HIV disease concludes that changes are needed in the areas of health care, education and prevention, and attention to human rights.
Abstract
Study data came from a site visit and a hearing that gathered information from health care professionals, prisoners' rights advocates, educators, correctional personnel, former inmates, and inmates with HIV disease. Results revealed that inmates with HIV are rapidly acquiring tuberculosis, are often automatically segregated without justification, experience discrimination and unjust policies, and receive little or no effective education about HIV transmission and prevention. In addition, health care and counseling are inadequate, confidentiality is often violated through automatic segregation or other disclosure, and prevention measures are inadequate. Recommended changes include the development by the U.S. Public Health Service of guidelines for the prevention and treatment of HIV disease in all correctional facilities, immediate efforts to address the needs of incarcerated women and children, creation of a Federal program to attract health care providers to work in correctional systems, and clarification of Federal policies on prisoners' access to clinical trials and investigational new drugs. Also needed are meaningful drug treatment on demand, comprehensive HIV education and prevention for correctional staff and inmates, and efforts to educate judges and other court personnel about HIV disease.