Former Prisoners Twice as Likely to Die of Premature Causes: Study

Former prisoners are more than twice as likely to die of premature causes, according to a recent study conducted by researchers at Georgia State University.

Lead study author and criminologist from the university William Alex Pridemore believes that this "mortality penalty" may be exposure to diseases such as HIV and TB or prolonged stress in the prison environment. Reintegration into society and employment may also take a toll on those who have come out of incarceration.

"We know that stress can weaken immune systems," Pridemore said, via a press release. "And in a very unpleasant twist of events, at the precise moment when these men are most vulnerable to a compromised immune system due to stress - that is, when they are incarcerated - they are most exposed to a host of communicable diseases whose rates are much higher in the prison population."

Statistics show that more than 2.5 million people are incarcerated each year in the United States. 95 percent of whom will eventually be released, according to background information from the study.

"Earlier research looked at the collateral consequences of mass imprisonment that started in the 1970s, when the U.S. went on an incarceration binge. Most focused on incarceration's limits on job prospects and earnings, marriages and its impact on communities," he added, via the release. "Now research is turning to its impact on health.

"Ironically, prisons provide an opportunity to screen and treat a population that may be unlikely or unable to take advantage of community-based health care," he continued. "Prisons should work with inmates, prior to their release, and provide health screenings and treatment and help them plan for their short-term and long-term health care needs. This investment will benefit not only the individual health of current and former prisoners, but also taxpayers and the broader community by way of improved population health."

More information regarding the findings can be seen via the article "The Mortality Penalty of Incarceration: Evidence from a Population-based Case-control Study of Working Age Males," from the Journal of Health and Social Behavior.