Opioid Use Treatment for Freed Inmates Banks on Medicaid Changes

Health-care advocates want Congress to bring Medicaid through the jailhouse door to prevent gaps in opioid use treatment for inmates ready to reenter society.

Dozens of groups have been pushing lawmakers to include a provision in the next Covid relief package that would allow states to restart health benefits for Medicaid-eligible inmates of prisons and jails within 30 days of their release. Rules dating back to the 1960s prevent use of Medicaid funds for inmates, shifting the burden of their health care to states and counties that may not have the funding to adequately provide it.

As many as half ...