Prison system found in contempt
Agency must pay $1.45M over substandard care
A U.S. District Court judge has found the Arizona Department of Corrections; its director, Charles Ryan; and its medical director, Richard Pratt, in civil contempt of court for repeatedly failing to meet the conditions of a 2014 court settlement over health care in state prisons.
In a ruling Friday afternoon, Magistrate Judge David Duncan also imposed sanctions of $1.45 million for failed standards from December through February. Duncan asked the parties to submit proposals on how that money might best be used for prison health concerns.
“The inescapable conclusion is that Defendants are missing the mark after four years of trying to get it right,” Duncan wrote in his order. “Their repeated failed attempts, and too-late efforts, to take their obligation seriously demonstrate a half-hearted commitment that
must be braced.”
The class-action suit, Parsons vs.
Ryan, was brought in 2012 by the Arizona Center for Disability Law on behalf of 13 inmates in Department of Corrections prisons, alleging the department provided inadequate care. It was joined by attorneys from the American Civil Liberties Union and the California-based Prison Law Office.
Parties in the case reached a settlement in 2014. Duncan continued to monitor compliance with the settlement, but by June 2017, he became increasingly aggravated at the department’s failure to meet the benchmarks. Whistle-blowers testified as to the bad standards of care. Ryan and Pratt testified as well.
The monthly hearings to monitor compliance turned increasingly to talk of sanctions, touching off a sub-conflict between Corrections and Corizon Health, the management company that provided health care for the system. It came out in court that Corrections had stipulated in its contract that Corizon, not Corrections, would be responsible for paying any sanctions, which made Duncan bristle.
“The evidence suggests that the States’ recalcitrance flows from its fear of losing its contracted healthcare,” he wrote in Friday’s ruling. “But even if true, such fear is not a factor that can properly be considered in determining what steps the State must take to meet the health care needs of its inmates. If a private contractor is pushed to the door because it cannot meet the State’s obligations, then so be it.”
Attorneys for Corrections tried re- peatedly to have Duncan removed from the case. He is, in fact, taking medical disability this month because of a series of strokes that have compromised his eyesight.
Friday afternoon’s contempt order was expected.
David Fathi, the lead attorney for the ACLU, said in a prepared statement, “The Arizona Department of Corrections made a promise when it settled this case in 2014: to provide basic health care to the 34,000 men, women and children in its custody. It never delivered. The Department continues to provide such inadequate medical care that people suffer needlessly for weeks and months, and some die preventable deaths. This is inhumane, unconstitutional and short-sighted. The harm done to prisoners’ health goes with them when they’re released, making it even harder for them to reintegrate into society and support their families.”
A spokesman for the Corrections Department said that the department would appeal the ruling.
“While not unexpected, given Magistrate Judge Duncan’s comments in Court these past months, it is still disappointing that he chose to issue such a controversial ruling on the same day he leaves the federal bench,” spokesman Andrew Wilder said in an email. “The Arizona Department of Corrections strongly disagrees with his ruling and is confident that the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals will reverse it because it is contrary to both the evidence and the law governing the Stipulation between the parties.”
Daniel Scarpinato, a spokesman for Gov. Doug Ducey, posted a statement on Twitter Friday evening condemning the ruling.
"This is an unjustified ruling against an agency that has done everything in its power to comply with the court's orders,'' he said. "We stand by Director Ryan and will continue to challenge any judge who attempts to set agency policy from the bench.”
Steve Rector, the CEO of Corizon, called the ruling a “charade by the ACLU.”
“As the healthcare provider chosen after the plaintiff ’s lawsuit was initiated, Corizon Health has worked diligently with the ADC to increase and meet compliance with the 849 measurements contained in the law suit settlement,” he wrote. “That progress now reflects exceeding minimum compliance rates on 90 percent or more of the measures. With an average of more than 4,100 patient encounters a day, Corizon Health is successfully providing an exceptional level of health care to Arizona’s prison population.”