Introduction
The United States (US) has the most extensive detention system in the world. Gramlich (2021) states that in 2019 there were about 2.1 million prisoners across the 6,000 facilities in the country, translating to a detention rate of about 810 prisoners per 100,000 people. There has been a general decline in the number of prisoners from 2006 – 2008 when the incarceration rate peaked at 1,000 inmates per 100,000 people (McKillop & Boucher, 2018). However, the trend is the opposite among elderly prisoners in the country. Even as they constitute about 16 percent of all prisoners, this demographic group represents the fastest growing in the US prison system. The trend attracts the need to identify the issues and challenges faced by the population, current solutions to the problems, and critical areas for improvement. The elderly population is likely to face health challenges and emotional breakdowns due to social isolation. The key solutions have been applying the compassionate release rule and social support. The situation can be better managed by accurate monitoring and implementation of compassionate release, the use of evidence-based policymaking, and service provision based on human rights.
Interest in Elderly Population in US Prisons
The choice of the topic related to the issue of the elderly population in prisons was prompted by a consideration of the increasing proportion of the demographic group in US prisons. An overview of the statistics points to a dramatic increase in the number and proportion of older people incarcerated despite an overall decline in the prison population. According to McKillop and Boucher (2018), from 1999 to 2016, the number of older adults aged 55 and older in US prisons went up by 280 percent. However, the number of younger people in prison grew by only three percent over the same period. Reese (2019) states that in 2017 close to 200,000 people aged 55 and older were put behind bars in the US. In addition, between 2012 and 2017, the older adults aged 50 and above incarcerated in US prisons accounted for 10 percent and 20 percent of the total prison population, representing a two-fold increase. Therefore, the statistics point to a highly worrying trend that should interest any concerned person.
Furthermore, projections point to a situation that is expected to become worse. According to Skarupski et al. (2018), estimates suggest that by 2030 the older adult population aged 55 and above in US prisons will account for over a third of the entire US prison population. Reese (2019) further indicates that the number of older adults detained in US prisons is projected to increase by 4,400 percent from 1981 to 400,000. The expected increase may have been foreseen as early as 1990 when the Department of Justice released a report on prisoner statistics by demography. Skarupski et al. (2018) state that at that time, a primetime news journalist stated that if no interventions were made, the US prisons would be maximum security nursing homes. In about three decades, the reporter’s account has proved to be prescient. The National Academy of Science recently released a report on mass detention. The organization bemoaned that “prisons increasingly are becoming a critical delivery site for nursing home-level care” (Skarupski et al., 2018, p.162). The projections further raise interest in wanting to examine this topic.
Issues and Challenges Facing the Elderly Population in US Prisons
The root cause of the rising numbers in the elderly prison population is the passage of stricter sentencing laws in the 1980s. Reese (2019) indicates that interventions such as “Three Strikes You are Out” have led to longer prison punishments that have consequently caused the US correctional system to struggle with an aging population. One major issue from the development is the increased vulnerability to diseases among older adults. Some elderly prisoners may already be sickly when imprisoned, a condition that worsens due to poor attention in prisons. In a detention facility, an older adult is likely to suffer high levels of trauma and stress, which increases the overall vulnerability to illness (Nair, 2017). The problem is that older adults will incur more costs as they require complex health and social care needs.
Additionally, the elderly population in the US problems suffers from geriatric syndromes, which entail conditions commonly associated with aging. Some of the conditions include falls, incontinence, and hearing or visual impairment. The conditions worsen depending on the health of a person and the surrounding environment, which causes a deep impact on medical management, quality of life, morbidity, and use of healthcare services. According to Skarupski et al. (2018), there is a higher prevalence rate of geriatric syndromes in older prisoners in the US. Moreover, geriatric syndromes cause a major challenge as they are strongly correlated with negative health outcomes translating into increased healthcare expenses.
Furthermore, older adults are exposed to mental and physical illness challenges. Gramlich (2021) states that between 16 percent and 36 percent of older adults in US prisons have been found to grapple with mental health difficulties. They also suffer from physical health complications involving hypertension, arthritis, HIV/AIDS, and tuberculosis. In addition, the harsh conditions of prison detention are positively correlated to an accelerated aging process. In prison, the individuals get exposed to isolation, substance abuse, and stress, along with inefficient preventive and primary care before confinement. As a result, an older adult aged 50 in prison develops a health profile comparable to a peer in a free society who could be aged 65 and above. Reese (2019) also indicates that elderly prisoners are exposed to chronic medical conditions that are expensive to treat. The elderly population in prison is also worried for their physical safety, given that they have a lower power to defend themselves from energetic and stubborn younger prisoners.
Interventions to Address the Issues and Challenges
The compassionate release policy is the most common approach to managing the issues and challenges that older adults face in US prisons. The policy developed in the 1970s bestows sickly elderly prisoners an opening to spend their sunset days out of jail (Nair, 2017). The policy is applied differently across all states in the US. For instance, in Maryland and California, the policy is referred to as geriatric release, which is applied depending on age, while the typical compassionate release policy is founded on disease. The policy provides an opening for older adults in prison suffering from physical, mental, and emotional difficulties to be released to seek better medical attention. While out of prison the older adults can seek help from hospitals and nursing homes that provide patient-focused care services.
Another intervention is social support targeting incarcerated older adults with no mental illness. Considering that they are exposed to stressful and traumatic life experiences, this population needs proactive care (Nair, 2017). Therefore, detention facilities provide coping resources ingrained in a person to enable the individual to handle stressors more effectively, reducing exposure to stress and trauma. The common approach favored by prison employees is putting together younger and older inmates. Skarupski et al. (2018) state that relations between the two demographic groups do yield positive and beneficial outcomes for both younger and older populations in US prisons. The interaction is often characterized by mentor-type exchange in which the older inmates feel better by offering advice to younger offenders. Therefore, social support may be helpful as it increases a person’s capacity to reduce psychological and emotional distress, trauma, and stressful life incidents. Increased social support further significantly reduces an elderly prisoner’s fear of death.
Recommendations for Improvement
Compassionate release remains a primary intervention that needs to be reviewed and enhanced to have a more significant effect. Reese (2019) indicates that elderly prisoners apply for compassionate release but to no avail and there have been cases where wardens’ and medics’ opinions have been repealed in supporting an applicant’s compassionate release. The compassionate release policy can be adjusted to ensure the plight of older adults in US prisons facing physical, mental, medical, and emotional challenges. It should be designed in such a way that this elderly population is given priority instead of majorly looking at them as a threat to security.
In addition, the elderly population in prison can be supported through evidence-based policymaking. Bureaucrats, constituents, and politicians should be made to see the intrinsic value of supporting older adults by setting up a formal network of services for this population (Gramlich, 2021). They can be connected to counselors, medical and mental health care providers, and peer support groups.
Another important area for consideration is the provision of services to elderly prisoners from a human rights perspective. It is critical that prison employees, including corrections officers, show respect for the human rights of older adults in US prisons. McKillop and Boucher (2018) state that the approach can be based on the needs and susceptibility of every prisoner. For instance, they can be protected from physical abuse by being confined in separate dorms from younger prisoners who are extortionists and violent. They can be provided with additional clothing and blankets to keep them warmer in cold weather.
Conclusion
The topic of elderly adults in US prisons is fascinating because of the trends and patterns observed over the past. Despite a declining prison population in the country, the demographic category of older adults aged 55 and above shows a reverse trend with high percentages. The trend is expected to worsen if appropriate measures are not implemented to reverse the pattern. This has resulted in numerous challenges for the older adults being detained in US prisons. In particular, the older adults in detention suffer from geriatric syndromes, chronic medical conditions, and complex emotional, psychological, and physical ailments. Compassionate release and social support programs have been developed to address the issues and challenges. However, the solutions need to be reevaluated to address the shortcomings and have a more significant impact in dealing with the problem of the increasing elderly population in US prisons. The compassionate release program can be adjusted to focus more on the elderly population in US prisons, supported by evidence-based policymaking and handling of older adults through a human rights perspective.
References
Gramlich, J. (2021). America’s incarceration rate falls to lowest level since 1995. Pew Research Center. Web.
McKillop, M., & Boucher, A. (2018). Aging prison populations drive up costs. Pewtrusts.org. Web.
Nair, P. (2017). Challenges of managing asthma in an elderly population. Polish Archives of Internal Medicine, 127(4), 291–293. Web.
Reese, H. (2019, July 17). What should we do about our aging prison population? JSTOR Daily. Web.
Skarupski, K. A., Gross, A., Schrack, J. A., Deal, J. A., & Eber, G. B. (2018). The health of America’s aging prison population. Epidemiologic Reviews, 40(1), 157–165. Web.