For Immediate Release

April 13, 2021

Contact: media@colorofchange.org.

COLOR OF CHANGE: P.A. BILL ESTABLISHING MEDICAL PAROLE IS AN IMPORTANT STEP — BUT NOT ENOUGH TO PROTECT INCARCERATED INDIVIDUALS

Scott Roberts, Senior Director of Criminal Justice and Democracy Campaigns at Color Of Change, issued this statement following the introduction of Pennsylvania Senate Bill 549, which would establish medical parole and create a Temporary Disaster Emergency Inmate Transfer Program to deal with COVID-19 in jails and prisons:

“With more than 13,000 COVID-19 cases in Pennsylvania’s jails and prisons and more than 100 deaths, this legislation granting medical parole to incarcerated individuals is an important step toward protecting them from the scourge of the virus. Nearly 1 in 5 people incarcerated in Pennsylvania have contracted COVID-19 and this proposal would provide much-needed relief to individuals whose underlying medical conditions make them particularly susceptible to illness.  

“But this legislation is not foolproof, and the bill’s requirement that individuals denied parole be returned to jails and prisons at the end of this emergency is simply unacceptable. Temporary medical parole means that, particularly with the current Pennsylvania parole board, countless individuals will be sent back to the filthy, dangerous conditions that allowed the pandemic to sweep through these facilities. And because of the systemic racism embedded in our justice and parole systems, this legislation, while well meaning,  will disproportionately impact Black individuals who are already overrepresented in jails and prisons. 

“We want and need medical parole. However, these loopholes and carve-outs do nothing to maintain public safety and threaten to needlessly put more lives at risk. As long as this pandemic continues, mass incarceration is a death sentence and we are continuing to fight for the protection and immediate release of our incarcerated loved ones. We demand permanent medical parole for individuals with underlying conditions and stable reentry plans and resources to ensure that they are supported when they return to their communities.”  

###

Color Of Change is the nation’s largest online racial justice organization. We help people respond effectively to injustice in the world around us. As a national online force driven by over 7 million members, we move decision-makers in corporations and governments to create a more human and less hostile world for Black people in America. Visit www.colorofchange.org