ABSTRACT
The nature of mass incarceration in the United States provided the perfect breeding ground for the coronavirus to spread. This chapter summarizes a range of measures departments of corrections (DOCs) took between March 2020 and July 2021 to prevent the spread of the virus, including release mechanisms implemented, suspensions of medical co-pays, and the imposition of lockdowns in prisons. In addition to discussing the impact of these changes on incarcerated people, the chapter describes alternate measures advocacy organizations recommended that were ultimately underutilized. This chapter posits that the most important measure of the effectiveness of DOC policies is evidenced by infection and mortality rates, and, upon assessing both measures, it is clear prison systems did not do enough to protect the incarcerated people in their care.
