Collins writes: "An amended lawsuit submitted by lawyers of African-American
political prisoner Mumia Abu-Jamal alleges that Pennsylvania state prison
officials neglected to treat him for Hepatitis C, leading to the development
of severe, full-body rashes and open sores that landed him in the hospital
earlier this year."
Demonstrators march in support of Mumia Abu-Jamal. (photo: Mark Stehill/AP)
Mumia Abu-Jamal Sues Philadelphia Prison for Denying His Hepatitis C
Treatment
By Sam P.K. Collins, ThinkProgress
08 August 15
An amended lawsuit submitted by lawyers of African-American political
prisoner Mumia Abu-Jamal alleges that Pennsylvania state prison officials
neglected to treat him for Hepatitis C, leading to the development of
severe, full-body rashes and open sores that landed him in the hospital
earlier this year.
In March, medical personnel rushed an unconscious Abu-Jamal to Schuylkill
Medical Center in Pottsville, Pennsylvania after he experienced renal
failure and his glucose rose to life-threatening levels. During his stay,
officials allegedly didn't give Abu-Jamal any treatment or information about
his condition, despite some knowledge of his medical history - including a
2012 Hepatitis C diagnosis.
Abu-Jamal, a well-known print and radio journalist, has been incarcerated
since his 1982 conviction and death sentence for the murder of a
Philadelphia police officer, a crime he says he didn't commit. The outcome
of his trial - a proceeding that Amnesty International said didn't meet
international standards - drew the ire of activists around the world and
sparked a campaign to get him off death row and vacate his sentence.
In the amended lawsuit, Abu-Jamal's lawyers say his medical neglect at a
state correctional institution caused the conspicuous skin rashes and body
sores on his body, which appeared last summer and persisted well beyond his
initial hospitalization. The original lawsuit - filed in June by Bret Grote
of the Abolitionist Law Center and co-counsel Bob Doyle - accused hospital
personnel of denying Abu-Jamal access to friends, family, doctors, and
lawyers during a second visit.
"One of the dangers of the illness is that people may not know they have it,
which could delay treatment. Since his diagnosis, the prison hasn't
monitored Mumia's Hepatitis C, or anyone else's for that matter," Grote told
ThinkProgress.
"They only informed Mumia that his Hepatitis C was active last week," Grote
added. "Under guidelines established by the Infectious Diseases Society of
America, every Hepatitis C-positive person should be treated. They say
highest priority should be in cases of serve manifestations of the illness,
including skin conditions. So he certainly qualifies for that treatment."
Pennsylvania Department of Corrections officials didn't return
ThinkProgress' requests for comment.
Abu-Jamal counts among the one in six prison inmates across the country who
are infected with Hepatitis C, in what the U.S. Surgeon General describes as
a "silent epidemic." The newest Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved
antiviral treatment for the condition, though very effective, costs up to
nearly $90,000, which makes prison officials reluctant to dole it out amid
increasing prison populations and tightening state budgets. An analysis in
the New England Journal of Medicine found that treating all Hepatitis
C-positive inmates would cost nearly $33 billion, more than triple the
combined total spending for medical care in 44 state prison systems.
But this ongoing financial quandary hasn't deterred calls to provide
life-saving treatment to Hepatitis C-positive prisoners, particularly due to
the regimen's success rate of 95 percent. In June, two inmates filed a
lawsuit against the Massachusetts Department of Corrections, alleging prison
officials withheld medication from 1,500 people. That followed a similar
case in Minnesota, where inmates sued their state prison system for medical
neglect. Though courts haven't entertained high price of medication as a
valid explanation, state prison systems have been left to their own devices
to decide what's considered "medically necessary." In some states, expensive
treatment is prioritized for inmates with advanced forms of illness, as
reported in the Wall Street Journal.
"These drugs work, they don't have to be taken for very long, there are no
side effects, and they're effective nearly 100 percent of the time," Joel
Thompson, a staff attorney at Prisoners' Legal Services and the lead counsel
for the Massachusetts lawsuit, told BuzzFeed News in June. "But because of
the sticker price of the drug and the large cohort, it's a scary number of
people in line."
Exorbitant prices for new Hepatitis C treatment haven't only affected
prisoners. Medicaid budgets have been strained too, causing more than 30
states to classify the medication as a "non-preferred drug" - which creates
more hurdles for clinicians trying to heal their patients. Researchers say
these restrictions may violate federal laws that require states to cover
drugs with FDA labels, especially since drug companies more than likely have
rebate agreements with the Department of Health and Human Services. Even if
Medicaid programs wanted to negotiate prices, federal law forbids them from
doing so.
In recent years, Hepatitis C has surpassed HIV as a cause of death in the
United States. When left untreated, the infection can develop into liver
cirrohosis, which slows blood flow and impairs this organ's ability to
process nutrients and toxins. Hepatitis C has also been tied to hepatic
encephalopathy - a buildup of toxins in the brain that causes confusion,
disorientation, and fatigue. Other long-term effects include skin sores,
inflammation of the kidneys, and type 2 diabetes - some of which Abu-Jamal
reportedly experienced.
Though it's unclear how Abu-Jamal contracted Hepatitis C, the disease
usually spreads via needle sharing and tattooing, two common activities in
correctional facilities. In general, the people infected with hepatitis C
are disproportionately low-income.
Grotes said the case could have big implications for other prisoners
suffering under similar circumstances.
"Since we have one plaintiff, it's not the sort of case where we could argue
for system-wide changes, but setting a precedent where Mumia is able to get
treatment would benefit others who are seeking the same relief," Grote said.
"These new medications aren't complicated. People take this pill every day
for eight to 12 weeks. The issue is cost. Part of this scandal is the
monopoly pricing in the pharmaceutical industry for treatments of diseases
that affect poor people and people of color disproportionately."
For more than 30 years, much of the world has come to know Abu-Jamal, also a
former Black Panther, through his radio essays and published books on social
and political issues. Despite the efforts of the Fraternal Order of Police
and other detractors to secure his execution, the U.S. Court of Appeals for
the Third Circuit upheld a lower court's decision to set aside the death
sentence in 2011.
Since then, Abu-Jamal has served out his life sentence among general
population inmates while continuing to express his thoughts online. In
April, he released a commentary on the police killing of Walter Scott
shortly after watching the initial television reports from a prison
infirmary. Former police officer Michael Slager was eventually indicted on
murder charges for shooting Scott.
"Remember the young man who allegedly shot - not killed - two cops in
Ferguson several weeks ago? Every politician in America leaped at the chance
to call the kid a punk, a thug. Now, what do you call Slager?" Abu-Jamal
said. "What have you heard? Even though he's been fired, he's called
'officer' today, or 'Mr. Slager.' He killed a man for a traffic citation and
lied about it. Is he a punk, a predator, or what Huey P. Newton used to
call, a pig?"
Error! Hyperlink reference not valid. Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.
Demonstrators march in support of Mumia Abu-Jamal. (photo: Mark Stehill/AP)
http://thinkprogress.org/health/2015/08/07/3688893/mumia-hep-c-treatment-den
ial/http://thinkprogress.org/health/2015/08/07/3688893/mumia-hep-c-treatment
-denial/
Mumia Abu-Jamal Sues Philadelphia Prison for Denying His Hepatitis C
Treatment
By Sam P.K. Collins, ThinkProgress
08 August 15
n amended lawsuit submitted by lawyers of African-American political
prisoner Mumia Abu-Jamal alleges that Pennsylvania state prison officials
neglected to treat him for Hepatitis C, leading to the development of
severe, full-body rashes and open sores that landed him in the hospital
earlier this year.
In March, medical personnel rushed an unconscious Abu-Jamal to Schuylkill
Medical Center in Pottsville, Pennsylvania after he experienced renal
failure and his glucose rose to life-threatening levels. During his stay,
officials allegedly didn't give Abu-Jamal any treatment or information about
his condition, despite some knowledge of his medical history - including a
2012 Hepatitis C diagnosis.
Abu-Jamal, a well-known print and radio journalist, has been incarcerated
since his 1982 conviction and death sentence for the murder of a
Philadelphia police officer, a crime he says he didn't commit. The outcome
of his trial - a proceeding that Amnesty International said didn't meet
international standards - drew the ire of activists around the world and
sparked a campaign to get him off death row and vacate his sentence.
In the amended lawsuit, Abu-Jamal's lawyers say his medical neglect at a
state correctional institution caused the conspicuous skin rashes and body
sores on his body, which appeared last summer and persisted well beyond his
initial hospitalization. The original lawsuit - filed in June by Bret Grote
of the Abolitionist Law Center and co-counsel Bob Doyle - accused hospital
personnel of denying Abu-Jamal access to friends, family, doctors, and
lawyers during a second visit.
"One of the dangers of the illness is that people may not know they have it,
which could delay treatment. Since his diagnosis, the prison hasn't
monitored Mumia's Hepatitis C, or anyone else's for that matter," Grote told
ThinkProgress.
"They only informed Mumia that his Hepatitis C was active last week," Grote
added. "Under guidelines established by the Infectious Diseases Society of
America, every Hepatitis C-positive person should be treated. They say
highest priority should be in cases of serve manifestations of the illness,
including skin conditions. So he certainly qualifies for that treatment."
Pennsylvania Department of Corrections officials didn't return
ThinkProgress' requests for comment.
Abu-Jamal counts among the one in six prison inmates across the country who
are infected with Hepatitis C, in what the U.S. Surgeon General describes as
a "silent epidemic." The newest Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved
antiviral treatment for the condition, though very effective, costs up to
nearly $90,000, which makes prison officials reluctant to dole it out amid
increasing prison populations and tightening state budgets. An analysis in
the New England Journal of Medicine found that treating all Hepatitis
C-positive inmates would cost nearly $33 billion, more than triple the
combined total spending for medical care in 44 state prison systems.
But this ongoing financial quandary hasn't deterred calls to provide
life-saving treatment to Hepatitis C-positive prisoners, particularly due to
the regimen's success rate of 95 percent. In June, two inmates filed a
lawsuit against the Massachusetts Department of Corrections, alleging prison
officials withheld medication from 1,500 people. That followed a similar
case in Minnesota, where inmates sued their state prison system for medical
neglect. Though courts haven't entertained high price of medication as a
valid explanation, state prison systems have been left to their own devices
to decide what's considered "medically necessary." In some states, expensive
treatment is prioritized for inmates with advanced forms of illness, as
reported in the Wall Street Journal.
"These drugs work, they don't have to be taken for very long, there are no
side effects, and they're effective nearly 100 percent of the time," Joel
Thompson, a staff attorney at Prisoners' Legal Services and the lead counsel
for the Massachusetts lawsuit, told BuzzFeed News in June. "But because of
the sticker price of the drug and the large cohort, it's a scary number of
people in line."
Exorbitant prices for new Hepatitis C treatment haven't only affected
prisoners. Medicaid budgets have been strained too, causing more than 30
states to classify the medication as a "non-preferred drug" - which creates
more hurdles for clinicians trying to heal their patients. Researchers say
these restrictions may violate federal laws that require states to cover
drugs with FDA labels, especially since drug companies more than likely have
rebate agreements with the Department of Health and Human Services. Even if
Medicaid programs wanted to negotiate prices, federal law forbids them from
doing so.
In recent years, Hepatitis C has surpassed HIV as a cause of death in the
United States. When left untreated, the infection can develop into liver
cirrohosis, which slows blood flow and impairs this organ's ability to
process nutrients and toxins. Hepatitis C has also been tied to hepatic
encephalopathy - a buildup of toxins in the brain that causes confusion,
disorientation, and fatigue. Other long-term effects include skin sores,
inflammation of the kidneys, and type 2 diabetes - some of which Abu-Jamal
reportedly experienced.
Though it's unclear how Abu-Jamal contracted Hepatitis C, the disease
usually spreads via needle sharing and tattooing, two common activities in
correctional facilities. In general, the people infected with hepatitis C
are disproportionately low-income.
Grotes said the case could have big implications for other prisoners
suffering under similar circumstances.
"Since we have one plaintiff, it's not the sort of case where we could argue
for system-wide changes, but setting a precedent where Mumia is able to get
treatment would benefit others who are seeking the same relief," Grote said.
"These new medications aren't complicated. People take this pill every day
for eight to 12 weeks. The issue is cost. Part of this scandal is the
monopoly pricing in the pharmaceutical industry for treatments of diseases
that affect poor people and people of color disproportionately."
For more than 30 years, much of the world has come to know Abu-Jamal, also a
former Black Panther, through his radio essays and published books on social
and political issues. Despite the efforts of the Fraternal Order of Police
and other detractors to secure his execution, the U.S. Court of Appeals for
the Third Circuit upheld a lower court's decision to set aside the death
sentence in 2011.
Since then, Abu-Jamal has served out his life sentence among general
population inmates while continuing to express his thoughts online. In
April, he released a commentary on the police killing of Walter Scott
shortly after watching the initial television reports from a prison
infirmary. Former police officer Michael Slager was eventually indicted on
murder charges for shooting Scott.
"Remember the young man who allegedly shot - not killed - two cops in
Ferguson several weeks ago? Every politician in America leaped at the chance
to call the kid a punk, a thug. Now, what do you call Slager?" Abu-Jamal
said. "What have you heard? Even though he's been fired, he's called
'officer' today, or 'Mr. Slager.' He killed a man for a traffic citation and
lied about it. Is he a punk, a predator, or what Huey P. Newton used to
call, a pig?"
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http://e-max.it/posizionamento-siti-web/socialize
