Accessing a COVID-19 vaccine is easy for most Pennsylvanians, unless you are incarcerated in a county jail.
For them there is a roughly 50/50 chance at getting the shot, more than two months after that high-risk population became eligible for them, according to a Philadelphia group that advocates for the humane treatment of inmates.
The Pennsylvania Prison Society last week said that it has only been able to confirm that 30 out of the state s 63 county jails have provided immunization opportunities to inmates and corrections staff.
The other counties are vaccinating only corrections staff or did not respond to information requests, according to the Prison Society.
Updated on May 13, 2021 at 6:58 am
What to Know
A rash of deadly violence has prisoner advocates asking for better conditions inside Philadelphia jails.
200 correctional officers have quit since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to city records.
The jail population dropped below 4,000 amid the coronavirus outbreak in 2020, but has since climbed back above 4,700.
The last time Eva Diaz spoke with her son, Frankie Jr., he was complaining about fellow inmates but looking forward to what he saw as his eventual release from the Philadelphia Detention Center.
“Next month, I go to trial. I know I m going to beat this and I ll be home,” she recalled him saying Aug. 16 last year. “I ll be alright. Don t worry.”
For people in prison, Johnson & Johnson pause may come at a cost msn.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from msn.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.