Health Affairs November 14, 2025
Compassionate release laws, otherwise called medical parole, are designed to allow release of incarcerated people with advanced illness who are no longer considered a public safety risk. Despite the promise of compassionate release as a humanitarian and cost-saving action, a staggeringly low number of people are released on medical parole. As the demographic shift of US aging hits prisons, this will only continue to exacerbate the problems of mass incarceration. Improving compassionate release outcomes will require a multifaceted approach: improved systems, increased transparency, and champions focused on its success.
The Aging Crisis In US Prisons
The aging crisis in prisons is multifactorial, resulting from the overall aging of the population as well as harsher sentencing laws such as “three strikes,”...
Today's Sponsors
Today's Sponsor