The health impacts of incarceration don’t end after release
Research suggests prison accelerates the aging process and may be a factor in falling U.S. life expectancy. DepositPhotos This article was originally featured on KFF Health News. After spending 38 years in the Alabama prison system, one of the most violent and crowded in the nation, Larry Jordan felt lucky to live long enough to regain his freedom. The decorated Vietnam War veteran had survived prostate cancer and hepatitis C behind bars when a judge granted him early release late last year. “I never gave up hope,” said Jordan, 74, who lives in Alabama. “I know a lot of people in prison who did.” At least 6,182 people died in state and federal prisons in 2020, a 46% jump from the previous year, according to data recently released by researchers from the UCLA Law Behind...