Incarceration negatively impacts the health of not only prisoners, but also their families and communities. Prisoners are in poorer health than the general U.S. population, and ex-prisoners returning to communities often bring a host of unmet health needs.
A reduction in the number of people incarcerated could lead to better health outcomes for individuals and communities across populations. Reducing incarceration has strong implications for improving equity, as minorities are disproportionately likely to be arrested, convicted, and face harsher sentences. A decrease in incarceration rates may also reflect overall improvements in community conditions, such as poverty reduction, access to health services, and fair educational opportunities.
SOURCES: Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2018