Pharmaceuticals in State Prisons: How departments of corrections purchase, use, and monitor prescription drugs

In an effort to better understand the role of pharmaceuticals in the state correctional setting and budget, and in a state’s overall health care strategy, The Pew Charitable Trusts, in partnership with the Vera Institute of Justice, administered a survey in 2016 to each state’s department of corrections, receiving responses from every state except New Hampshire. Respondents were asked how much they spent on prescription drugs, what their highest-cost drugs were, whether they charged incarcerated adults copayments, and whether they had access to the federal Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) 340B discounted drug pricing program through an agreement with an eligible provider.