Civil rights groups are asking a federal judge to take control of health care in Arizona’s prison system away from the state Department of Corrections.
They’re saying the state has failed to fix longstanding issues that the court has already addressed.
In 2023, a judge ordered the Arizona Department of Corrections to boost staffing and close gaps in medical and mental health care, bringing them up to meet constitutional standards. Since then, though, the advocates that filed suit say preventable deaths, injuries and suffering have continued.
The department argues it hasn’t needed court oversight to make improvements like expanding treatment options and medical units.
But the plaintiffs insist that Arizona’s prison health care system is still failing inmates, and that a court-appointed receiver is the only way to ensure constitutional care; now, it’s in the judge’s hands.
