CT Prisons: Massive Health Care Delays, Ombuds Steps In

0:00In Connecticut prisons, folks approved for specialist care are waiting months, sometimes over two years, just to get an appointment. As of mid-March, more than 1,500 people were on that list, even though prison doctors already greenlit their off-site treatment, the state's correction on buds dropped a report Tuesday, calling out these massive delays. The on buds, Devon Ward, slammed the Department of Correction for no clear tracking of wait times and zero plan to fix it. This flies in the face of their own rules to match community-level health care. Ward warns it could breach constitutional rights if they don't step up soon. These aren't one-off stories. Real people are suffering. Take a guy with torn knee ligaments waiting months post-injury, his condition worsening, or another with a hernia delayed nearly six months despite priority status. Tragically, in May, Jeffrey Yao died in March, after waiting over two months for a heart specialist following a cardiac scare. Now, the on buds issued subpoenas to top DOC officials for a public hearing on May 12,

1:04the first time they've used that power, a follow-up set for June 15. The commissioners retiring May 1, with an interim stepping in, and DOC claims they're pushing to speed things up amid Dr. shortages. Pressures mounting on the system with this report piling on to earlier ones about staffing in conditions. Until they triage urgent cases, track progress monthly, and clear that backlog in 30 days like recommended incarcerated folks' health hangs in, the balance. For news today, power by AI bringing you what matters.