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Bill Would End Co-Pays for Inmates 12-10-18 05:40 DC

Some California inmates pay the equivalent of a $650 co-pay in order to see a doctor. That’s because inmates working inside prisons earn just 8-cent-a-hour, making the nominal $5 co-pay the equivalent of $650 for someone working outside the jail.

This means inmates work more than 60 hours to afford a single medical visit.

A bill introduced last week in the state legislature, Assembly Bill 45, would do away with the co-payments, that prisoner rights groups say lead to prisoners avoiding medical care.

The bill is authored by Assemblyman Mark Stone and backed by the ACLU and two prisoner advocacy groups, the California Coalition for Women Prisoners and Initiate Justice.

In a news release, the Scotts Valley Democrat said that although the fees may seem small to those outside of the prison system, the co-payments can have a significant impact on inmates’ health.

 

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