The NaphCare Charitable Foundation, Inc., a nonprofit dedicated to advancing the safety and wellbeing of communities through research, educational programs, and scholarship opportunities, announced that its research findings on jail population health trends in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic have been published in the Journal of Correctional Health Care.

Through this study, the Foundation’s research team analyzed the number of people in jails before and after the COVID-19 pandemic started, when jails were advised to decrease incarcerated populations to protect those with medical and behavioral health issues who were at higher risk of illness and virus spread. The study explores these changes, the status of medical and mental health issues among incarcerated individuals from 2019 to 2023 and insights about common medical and mental health issues among this population.

“The Foundation is committed to advancing correctional healthcare delivery based on insights from our research,” said Amber Simpler, PhD, ABPP, Executive Director of Behavioral Health Research for the NaphCare Charitable Foundation. “It’s a privilege to conduct research that will help pinpoint the precise ways the correctional healthcare industry can improve healthcare services and elevate the quality of care provided to incarcerated populations.”

Key research findings included:

• There was a 31% decrease in the jail population early in the pandemic. However, by 2023, all facilities operated at lower capacity than in 2019 but showed an increase in population compared to the lowest point in 2020.
• The percentage of detainees prescribed medication for behavioral health conditions increased from 25% in 2019 to 33% in 2023.
• In 2023, 57% of detainees required at least one medication to manage health needs, representing a 10% increase from 2019.

This is the first study to use prescription data to estimate prevalence of medical and behavioral health conditions in a national sample of jail detainees. The data offer a glimpse into the changing landscape of correctional healthcare. From this study, the Foundation next anticipates a deeper investigation of these findings through review of additional data trends.

About NaphCare Charitable Foundation

The NaphCare Charitable Foundation was established in 2011 for charitable, benevolent, educational and philanthropic purposes. The Foundation’s mission is to advance the safety and wellbeing of communities through research, educational programs, and scholarship opportunities. Additional information can be found on the organization’s website: www.naphcarecharitablefoundation.org.

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