Shame! Gov. Brown Vetoes Bll Allowing Condoms In Prison

There is bad news to report today on the status of the progressive goal to improve the lives and health of people in locked facilities in California.

Governor Jerry Brown has finally completed his work on the 900+ bills the Democratic super majority in the California legislature sent him this session. He has taken some action that progressives applaud and some that we can only shake our head at and wonder "What was he thinking?"

Overall, the Governor vetoed 96 bills in total and signed into law 805.

However, some of his more controversial legislative actions took place at the end, which occurred this weekend. On Saturday October 12th, Governor Brown vetoed AB 999 (Prisoner Protections for Family and Community Health Act) which would have eventually allowed condoms in state prisons. The Governor's Office released his veto message:

To The Members of the California State Assembly: 

I am returning Assembly Member Bill 999 without my signature. 

This bill would require the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to develop a plan to expand the availability of condoms to all California prisons. 

The Department currently allows family visitors to bring condoms for the purpose of the family overnight visitation program. While expansion of this program may be warranted, the Department should evaluate and implement this expansion carefully and within its existing authority.  

Sincerely 

Edmund G. Brown, Jr

This is disappointing news. As readers of the blog may know, I have been on the board of directors of the Center for Health Justice for years. Health Justice has the mission to eliminate disparities between prisoner health and public health and one way it does this is by distribution of condoms in Los Angeles County jails.

The point of the legislation was to give CDCR the authority (and political cover) to consider the availability of condoms in prisons (we're talking about a condom machine, people). This is because people in prison have sex with each other, and people who are in prison often have sexually transmitted infections. Officially, sex between prisoners is against the law, so making condoms available is viewed by some as an enticement to break the law. Most public health advocates strongly support actions that will "reduce harm" and they agree that increased access to condoms in locked facilities will improve the health of prisoners (and the public) and will not reduce safety for those who work in locked facilities.

It is unfortunate Gov. Brown had to use AB 999 as an example to show less progressive members of the political spectrum his conservative bona fides. He now joins his predecessor, Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in vetoing a measure that would have allowed condoms in prison.

Shame on you, Governor!

Today is GIVE OUT DAY! Support LGBT Rights!

Today is Give Out Day 2013. Here is the info about what it is:

On May 9th, 2013 we invite you to be part of history and participate in the 1st national Give OUT Day for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender & Queer community.  

So, what is the Give OUT Day? 
Give OUT Day is a new national initiative that aims to mobilize thousands of individual donors on a single day across the country to give in support of the LGBTQ nonprofit community. Give OUT Day will be breaking new ground as it adapts a fundraising model that has proven successful for local multi-issue fundraising to a national single-issue focus.

Giving Day campaigns across the country have been successful at raising millions of dollars for local nonprofits. What’s more, this model has proven to bring in NEW donors and NEW dollars, complimenting and amplifying nonprofits’ existing fundraising efforts. More dollars and new donors is what our community needs today.
Giving Day campaigns across the country have been successful at raising millions of dollars for local nonprofits. What’s more, this model has proven to bring in NEW donors and NEW dollars, complimenting and amplifying nonprofits’ existing fundraising efforts. More dollars and new donors is what our community needs today.

Organizations which I give money to (and you should, too) are: National Black Justice Coalition, Freedom To Marry, Immigration Equality, Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund, Equality California, Lambda Legal, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, Gay Lesbian Advocates and Defenders, American Foundation for Equal Rights, Center for Health Justice, Jordan/Rustin Coalition, The Williams Institute at UCLA and the L.A. Gay and Lesbian Center!

Hepatitis C Deaths Now Outpace HIV/AIDS Deaths

Well, this is somewhat surprising news. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced recently that in 2007 there were more Americans who died as a result of complications due to Hepatitis C than who died as a result of complications of AIDS/HIV.

In a study in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine (abstract here), U.S. Centers for Disease Control researchers analyzed causes of death on more than 21.8 million U.S. death certificates filed between 1999 and 2007. Rates of death related to hepatitis C, a viral infection that causes chronic liver disease, rose at an average rate of .18 deaths per 100,000 persons per year. More than 15,000 people died from hepatitis C in 2007. HIV-related death rates declined .21 deaths per 100,000 people per year — 12,734 people died from HIV in 2007. Rates of death related to a third infection, hepatitis B, remained more or less constant over the study period, falling .02 deaths per 100,000 people per year to just more than 1,800 deaths in 2007.

Reuters provides some more details about this development.

Hepatitis C is a liver infection caused by a virus of the same name that is usually passed through contact with infected blood. An estimated 75 to 85 percent of infections become chronic, which can eventually cause serious diseases like cirrhosis (scarring of the liver) and liver cancer. 

[...]

Of the estimated 3.2 million Americans with chronic hepatitis infection, about half of them don't know it, according to the CDC.

That's because the initial infection causes no symptoms in most cases. Instead, the virus silently damages the liver over the years, and people may only discover they are infected when they develop irreversible liver cirrhosis.

Happily, though, with Hepatitis C, there is a cure available. Get tested, especially if you were born between 1945 and 1964.

HIV Rate in Prison 2.5 Times General Population

I just received this interesting press release about a new Department of Justice report (pdf) which says that the prevalence rate of HIV/AIDS in state and federal prisons is roughly 150% greater than in the rest of the population:

WASHINGTON – On December 31, 2008, a reported 20,449 state prisoners and 1,538 federal prisoners were HIV positive or had confirmed AIDS, the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) in the Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice, announced today. At yearend 2008, an estimated 5,733 inmates in state and federal prisons had confirmed AIDS, down from 5,814 in 2007. In 2007, about 41 per 10,000 prison inmates were estimated to have confirmed AIDS, compared to 17 per 10,000 persons in the general population.

At yearend 2008, the reported number of state and federal inmates who were HIV positive or had confirmed AIDS totaled 21,987. Among states reporting data in 2006 through 2008, the number of inmates with HIV/AIDS was stable between 2007 and 2008. Of the state and federal inmates who were HIV positive or had confirmed AIDS, a reported 20,075 were men and 1,912 were women. Between 2007 and 2008, the percentage of male inmates with HIV/AIDS remained stable at 1.5 percent, while the percentage of female inmates with HIV/AIDS decreased slightly from 2.1 percent to 1.9 percent.

Florida (3,626), New York (3,500) and Texas (2,450) reported the largest number of HIV/AIDS cases. While these three states account for 24 percent of the total state custody population, together they account for 46 percent of HIV/AIDS cases in state prison. New York continues to report large decreases (down 450) in the number of HIV/AIDS cases. Notable increases between 2007 and 2008 were in California (up 246) and Florida (up 166).

Between 1995 and 2006 the number of state inmates who died from AIDS-related causes decreased 85 percent from 1,010 to 155. Continuing the downward trend, 120 state inmates died from AIDS-related causes in 2007. Among federal inmates, 13 died from AIDS-related causes in 2008, up from 10 in 2007.

During 2008, a total of 24 states reported testing all inmates for HIV at admission or sometime during custody. Among these 24 states, 23 tested at admission, five tested while in custody, and six tested upon release. Fifty states and the federal system tested inmates if they had HIV-related symptoms or if they requested an HIV test. Forty-two states and the federal system tested inmates after they were involved in an incident in which an inmate was exposed to a possible HIV transmission, and 18 states and the federal system tested inmates who belonged to specific high-risk groups.

Emphasis (in bold) added by me. Some thoughts about this report (which is available here). Some observations and reactions:

1. California only has 1,155 prisoners with HIV or AIDS in 2008? That 0.8% of the custody population seems suspiciously low (Nevada's rate is 0.9%, for example)
2. It's pretty amazing that the prevalence rate for HIV is higher among female prisoners than male prisoners (1.9% to 1.5%).
   
3. Almost half the states (24) test prisoners for HIV at some point during custody. The question is, how well do they do in treating these prisoners as well as in preventing transmission in prison and upon release.
4. More than 90% of all prisoners in prisons and jails come back home so thinking that HIV in prison is something you and I don't have to think about it very shortsighted.

The Center for Health Justice is a non-profit organization in Los Angeles who I just recently stepped down as Board president of after two and a half years. Their mission is to empower people affected by incarceration and HIV to make healthier choices and advocates for the elimination of disparities between prisoner health and public health.