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Network for Public Health Law

Parsons v. Shins

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Overview

Prison Populations. Parsons v. Shins (U.S. District Court – Arizona): On March 16, 2020, in an ongoing class action suit against the Arizona Department of Corrections (ADC), an emergency motion was filed asking the court to order ADC to engage in efforts to protect prison populations from COVID-19. The 2012 lawsuit challenges ADC’s healthcare system in ten Arizona prisons. After recently visiting one of the prisons, class attorneys sent a letter to ADC expressing concern over its lack of any plan to address COVID-19 illness in the prisons. The letter also states the prison was unhygienic and filthy. The emergency motion seeks to require ADC to suspend inmate charges for soap and medical co-pays, and to require ADC to consult with health care experts in developing COVID-19 management and treatment plans.

View all cases in the Judicial Trends in Public Health – April 2, 2020.