Vaccines have slowly made their way into the prison system but not until more than a third of the people in jails and prisons became infected. In some cases, these facilities were the worst superspreaders — with infections spreading between prisoners and staff. Read more: https://www.poynter.org/reporting-editing/2021/the-astonishing-toll-of-covid-19-in-jails-and-prisons/
As states have begun COVID-19 inoculations at prisons across the country, corrections employees are refusing vaccines at alarming rates, causing some public health experts to worry about the prospect of controlling the pandemic both inside and outside. The Marshall Project and The Associated Press in collaboration spoke with correctional officers and union leaders nationwide, [...]
The Detroit Free Press reports that prisoners and staff at a state correctional facility in Michigan are now being tested daily for the coronavirus after the detection of the highly contagious B.1.1.7 variant of coronavirus. The variant, which first appeared in the United Kingdom in September, spreads more easily than other previously identified strains. [...]
A faster-spreading variant of coronavirus has been discovered for the first time at a Michigan prison reports Patch.com. The report notes that MDOC officials said an employee at the Bellamy Creek Correctional Facility in Ionia had tested positive for B.1.1.7, otherwise known as the U.K. variant of the coronavirus. It is the first known [...]
The Detroit Free Press reported on October 26 that, "The novel coronavirus has torn through a prison in Marquette, infecting 75% of the more than 1,000 men housed there." The article also notes, "42% of the 327 employees at Marquette Branch Prison in the Upper Peninsula had tested positive for COVID-19... A recent surge in [...]
The Detroit Free Press reported that cases among Marquette prison staff doubled in one day. The Michigan Department of Corrections reported 41 new COVID-19 cases among Marquette's staff, bringing the total number of employee cases to 79. The prison along Lake Superior has the highest number of infections among employees of the state's 29 correctional facilities.
TV station WLUC reported on October 16th that nearly a quarter of Marquette Branch Prison minimum security inmates have been transferred to Newberry Correctional Facility amid ongoing staffing absences stemming from COVID. Currently 204 inmates have tested positive with COVID. 96 prison staff have also reported positive, the highest in any Michigan correctional facility. [...]
WLUC reported on October 12th that additional correction staff were brought in to assist Marquette Branch Prison (MBP) while it deals with a major COVID outbreak. To assist with the staffing issues, MDOC is bringing in volunteers and members of its Emergency Response Team. Read more: https://www.uppermichiganssource.com/2020/10/12/extra-staff-brought-to-marquette-branch-prison-amid-coronavirus-outbreak/
The Detroit Free Press reported on August 27th, 2020 that the union representing Michigan prison officers called for the removal of Michigan Department of Corrections Director Heidi Washington. The union noted that it has lost confidence in her leadership over the handling of the coronavirus pandemic. "The Michigan Corrections Organization will be submitting a vote [...]
In an article published August 24, 2020, bridgemi.com reported that, with a new surge of COVID-19 cases in Michigan's prisons, many inmates who test positive are placed in solitary confinement. Since March, the Michigan Department of Corrections has placed inmates who are sick or suspected of being so in solitary confinement — which is normally [...]
