Fluvanna Co. Lawsuit Claims Prisoners Denied Basic Health Care

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Fluvanna Co. Lawsuit Claims Prisoners Denied Basic Health Care By: Rachel Ryan (http://www.newsplex.com/station/bios/news/101496729.html) - Email (http://www.newsplex.com/news/headlines/mailto:[email protected]) Updated: Tue 3:58 PM, Jul 24, 2012

July 24, 2012 The Legal Aid Justice Center has filed a lawsuit claiming prisoners at the Fluvanna County Correctional Center for Women (FCCCW) have suffered prolonged pain and even death because of inadequate health care services. They say this has been going on for years. The class action Lawsuit has been filed against the Virginia Department of Corrections and Armor Correctional Health Services, the for-profit company hired to provide health care to prisoners at FCCCW. The lawsuit states prisoners are forced to wait several months to see a doctor and that they are repeatedly denied specialized care. Lawyers with the Legal Aid Justice Center say hundreds of grievances have been filed over the years, and that the goal of this lawsuit is to save lives. “We have heard over and over they have been trying to get basic life-saving health care. Basic access to meds that would stop their pain, stop premature death, and stop diseases from spreading to the entire Virginia community,” said Deborah Golden, Washington Lawyer’s Committee. Neither the Department of Corrections nor Armor Correctional Health Services have responded to this lawsuit filed today.

Larry Traylor, Director of Communications for the Virginia Department of Corrections sent CBS19 the following response: It is the policy of the Virginia Department of Corrections not to comment on pending litigation. The VADOC is constitutionally bound to provide all the medically necessary and adequate health care needs of every offender. This means we are bound to preserve life, reduce deterioration of health and to follow a community standard of care. Many offenders arrive in our system with multiple medical conditions that they have developed over time and have often been neglected. Once health care is made available to them, they often want immediate cures, despite their years of self-neglect. If a doctor or doctors feel a procedure is necessary to preserve life, reduce deterioration of health and to follow a community standard of care, we will provide it.

CBS19 reached out to Armor Correctional Health Services, but they declined on comment on the matter.

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