The Covid-19 pandemic has exposed the multiple challenges that poor people face when it comes to obtaining essential health care services. The problem is especially acute in Alabama, where many counties have no physicians and access to health care is extremely limited.
Our work with chronically ill people in Alabama’s prisons has exposed serious shortcomings in prison health care that lead to long term problems for people leaving prison. Many people who have been imprisoned in Alabama suffer from trauma, addiction, and a wide variety of untreated chronic medical diseases.
EJI is launching a program to provide health care services to poor and low-income people in Alabama. Our program is designed to directly address some of the biggest challenges for people leaving the state’s prisons.
We will offer free health care services to people released from Alabama prisons and provide additional care and services to promote successful re-entry.
EJI believes that providing access to behavioral health services as well as treatment for chronic disease can have a huge impact on the likelihood of a successful re-entry for people leaving Alabama’s dangerous and violent prisons. This can reduce recidivism and increase public safety.
