Correctional Medical Care for Female Prisoners: Legal Issues Surrounding Inadequate Treatment of Chronic and/or Preexisting Health Conditions

• Author: Chelsi Lamberton,Michael S. Vaughn
• Published date: 01 September 2022
• Date: 01 September 2022
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1177/00328855221109824
• Subject Matter: Articles

Correctional Medical

Care for Female

Prisoners: Legal Issues

Surrounding Inadequate

Treatment of Chronic

and/or Preexisting

Health Conditions

Chelsi Lamberton

1

and Michael S. Vaughn

2

Abstract

Research shows incarcerated women suffer more chronic and/or preexisting

health conditions than their male counterparts. Through the lens of federal

court litigation pursuant to Title 42 U.S. Code Section 1983, this article dis-

cusses women who brought legal challenges, questioning the adequacy of

correctional medical care rendered to their chronic and preexisting health

conditions. Case law reveals several trends, including multiple disease co-

morbidities, malingering, medication administration, free-world specialty

care, diagnostic and treatment limitations, and mental illness. The article

concludes with policy implications, suggestions for future research, and rec-

ommendations for accelerated research on the chronic and/or preexisting

health conditions of female prisoners.

Keywords

women prisoner health care, correctional health care forwomen, correctional

medical care, inmate litigation

1

University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA

2

Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, TX, USA

Corresponding Author:

Michael S. Vaughn, Sam Houston State University Department of Criminal Justice & Criminology,

Institute for Legal Studies in Criminal Justice, 816 17

th

St., PO Box 2296, Huntsville, TX 77341,

USA.

Email: mvaughn@shsu.edu

Article

The Prison Journal

2022, Vol. 102(4) 493–514

© 2022 SAGE Publications

Article reuse guidelines:

sagepub.com/journals-permissions

DOI: 10.1177/00328855221109824

journals.sagepub.com/home/tpj

Introduction

Due to mass incarceration, truth-in-sentencing laws, three strikes statutes, and

mandatory minimum sentences, the United States has seen a precipitous rise

in female prisoners (McConnell, 2017). Incarcerating more female prisoners

places a strain on correctional health care services because women have

unique health needs that require different care than men (Marquis, 2018).

Compared to free-world women, female inmates suffer disproportionately

from serious and chronic illnesses (Eliason et al., 2004). Specif‌ically, research

shows that female inmates have “a substantially higher burden of chronic

medical and psychiatric disorders than”male prisoners (Binswanger et al.,

2010, p. 479). These health problems are often comorbid, as female

inmates frequently have multiple chronic co-occurring mental (Facer-Irwin

et al., 2019) and physical illnesses (Bai et al., 2015). Chronic conditions

also adversely impact female inmates at a younger age than those in the free-

world, as studies have shown that—due to pains of imprisonment and lifestyle

diseases—incarcerated individuals are physiologically older than their chro-

nological age (Andersen & Nielsen, 2016; Williams et al., 2012).

Despite female offender populations rising faster than any other demo-

graphic, and considering that the average age of incarcerated women is also

increasing, there has been little research on the care of chronic and/or preex-

isting illnesses in female correctional facilities (Harzke & Pruitt, 2018;

Lemieux et al., 2002). Available research shows, however, that women

enter incarceration with a multitude of preexisting illnesses and dispropor-

tionately suffer from chronic illnesses (Lindquist & Lindquist, 1999). The

most common reported chronic illnesses among this population include arthri-

tis, hepatitis, hypertension, asthma, cancer, diabetes, kidney problems, and

heart conditions (Binswanger et al., 2010; Leigey & Hodge, 2012). While

it is well-documented that incarcerated women are a high-risk population

with serious health concerns, studies on the care of chronically ill female

inmates show that chronic care is inadequate (Dinkel & Schmidt, 2014;

Harner & Riley, 2013). Mental health among female prisoners is also a

concern, with one study estimating that 75% of female inmates with behav-

ioral problems possessed multiple mental comorbidities (Blitz et al., 2005).

In short, researchers conclude that “incarcerated women are particularly dis-

advantaged and ill compared with their male counterparts”(Binswanger et al.,

2010, p. 479).

This article focuses on female prisoners who possess chronic and/or preex-

isting health conditions. Through the lens of federal court intervention pursu-

ant to lawsuits under Title 42 U.S. Code Section 1983, the article discusses

the emerging problem of co-morbidities among females incarcerated in the

494 The Prison Journal 102(4)