Health care for incarcerated individuals faces complex challenges, underscored by the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic with numerous cases in the nation’s prisons and jails. In addition to this unprecedented challenge, correctional institutions face limited health care budgets, greater acuity of mental health needs, and the opioid crisis.

To accelerate the pace of innovation needed to meet these changes, NCCHC is proud to announce the establishment of a new charitable organization—the NCCHC Correctional Health Foundation. The Foundation’s mission is to champion the correctional health care field and serve the public by supporting research, professional education, and scholarships.

The Foundation will seek individual donations and corporate and government support to:

•    Support clinical research that identifies best practices and leads to better outcomes in correctional settings
•    Gather, analyze, and disseminate data to support high quality correctional health care
•    Encourage health care efficacy and efficiency through support for evidence-based medicine
•    Mentor the next generation of correctional health professionals and support their continuing education needs
•    Provide resources to incarcerated individuals on supporting their own health

Jennifer Riskind, director of the foundation notes, “Correctional health care is public health. Over 95% of incarcerated individuals will eventually return to their communities, and their health problems and needs will often continue. Supporting their health with interventions, care and education makes the entire community healthier.”

More information is available at ncchc.org/foundation.