From New York Daily News:
Returning home from prison is a profoundly emotional experience. It can also be a deadly one. In the period immediately following release, formerly incarcerated people are 12 times more likely to die than the general population, from causes ranging from heart disease to suicide and drug overdose.
I’ve weathered the prison-to-community transition, and I helped countless others through it while working at several reentry organizations in New York. For most people on that journey, obstacles such as homelessness, unemployment and fractured community support are exacerbated by another daunting, and sometimes lethal, challenge — an interruption in health care.
Justice-involved people have higher rates of physical and mental health problems, from hypertension to asthma, cancer, infectious diseases and substance use disorders. Once released from jail or prison, they lose medications for such conditions, and reestablishing prescriptions, supportive care and health coverage is a slow and frustrating process. Continue reading >>>
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