Sept. 8, 2014<\/p>\n
\u201cThe aging prison population represents a national human-made epidemic decades in the making. …<\/p>\n
\u201cOur current trajectory is economically infeasible and morally untenable….<\/p>\n
\u201cAlthough there is no commonly agreed-upon age at which an incarcerated individual is \u2018old\u2019 \u2013 definitions range from 50 to 65 \u2013 it is clear that the number of people in prison requiring significant age-related medical care will continue to rise at a substantial rate. From 1995 to 2010, the U.S. prison population aged 55 or older nearly quadrupled….<\/p>\n
\u201cOn average, it costs approximately twice as much to incarcerate someone aged 50 and over ($68,270) than a younger, more able-bodied individual ($34,135)….<\/p>\n
\u201cThe elderly in prison also demonstrate a greater risk of injury, victimization, ailing health, and death than their younger counterparts….<\/p>\n
\u201cThe phenomenon of accelerated aging, which can be attributed to the prevalence of environmental stressors coupled with a lack of access to holistic healthcare, means that the body of an incarcerated 50-year-old has a \u2018physiological age\u2019 that is 10\u00a0to 15 years older….<\/p>\n
\u201cThe stated objectives of incarceration would suggest that correctional spending should be allocated among demographics in proportion to their public safety risk and potential for behavioral change.<\/p>\n
\u201cAging adults in prison have the lowest recidivism rate and pose almost no threat to public safety. Nationwide, 43.3 percent of all released individuals recidivate within three years, while only 7 percent of those aged 50-64 are returned to prison for new convictions….\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2013 From \u201c<\/em>The High Costs of Low Risk<\/em><\/a>: The Crisis of America\u2019s Aging Prison Population\u201d\u00a0prepared by the Osborne Association (July 2014) (Hat tip, the\u00a0<\/em>New York Times<\/a>)<\/em><\/p>\n