(Washington, DC) DC Department of Corrections Director Devon Brown announced that on October 1, 2006, the DC Department of Corrections entered in partnership with Unity Health Care to institute an innovative model of community-oriented healthcare services for individuals detained at the District’s detention facilities. Under this new model, one entity will be responsible for managing District inmates through the full healthcare continuum, including primary care, specialty care, emergency care and hospital care. Unity Health Care, the District’s largest federally qualified health center, will provide this service to detainees housed at the Central Detention Facility (DC Jail) and Correctional Treatment Facility (CTF) and connect them to a Unity health center in the community for continued care when they are released from custody.  

The Department of Corrections is legally responsible for providing medical, dental and mental health services to its detention population. Of the more than 19,000 individuals processed through the District of Columbia correctional system each year; approximately 3,500 are detained daily at the DC Jail and CTF. Many who enter the District’s detention system have not consistently sought health services outside of acute episodes, and many are incarcerated with a host of communicable and contagious illnesses. This new health care model will improve health services delivery for incarcerated persons while simultaneously improving health outcomes District-wide, by aligning the goals of public safety and public health. Unity Health Care teams will practice on-site at the jail to identify and develop treatment plans for diagnosed diseases and at community-based health centers to ensure that each released inmate has a full health care plan and a medical appointment at a community health center. 

This novel approach to healthcare for inmates reflects the vital and increasing role of corrections in contributing to the vibrancy of our communities," said Brown. "The District's detention system, like other correctional systems nationally, has now become a major provider of basic human services. As such, we not only play a critical role in ensuring public safety but also in promoting public health. Over the past several months we have worked with Unity Health Care, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Community-Oriented Correctional Health Services (COCHS) to put in place a model that recognizes that public safety and public health are truly intertwining concepts. We all benefit when those who enter jail walls return to our communities better people in all respects, including health."