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Today our county will weigh in on the path forward for healthcare in our correctional facilities. Many advocate for outsourcings to a private for profit entity-an entity with a fiduciary responsibility to their investors. I have a fiduciary obligations to the people of San Diego
We have seen time and again what happens with for-profit entities in correctional settings. And it isn't good. You could look at this exhaustive @CNN report from last year. https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2019/06/us/jail-health-care-ccs-invs/
This one from the @TheAtlantic warns us of what will come https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2019/09/private-equitys-grip-on-jail-health-care/597871/
Here is a little more local take from Michigan https://www.metrotimes.com/news-hits/archives/2020/03/12/lawsuit-targets-billion-dollar-company-making-life-and-death-medical-decisions-in-michigan-jails
This one covers Massachusetts, Alabama, etc. https://www.wbur.org/investigations/2020/03/24/jail-health-companies-profit-sheriffs-watch
I could post these cautionary notes of the perils of minimizing cost to maximize profit in jail.The Sheriff has made clear he wants to outsource and also made clear the Board of Supervisors have no say in his decision. Sadly, it is the taxpayers who will be left holding the bag.
You will hear "well everyone gets sued" so there is nothing to see here. But that completely ignores the broken nature of the model being embraced. And it ignore reality.
And the impact is not just on our correctional system. It is in perpetuating cycles of incarceration, poverty, homelessness, exasperating underlying health conditions. While we may not be able to compel the Sheriff to do the right thing, we can continue to try.
