U.S. Jails Hold More Mentally Ill Persons Than Hospitals Do

Ian C. Langtree - Writer/Editor for Disabled World (DW)
Published: 2010/08/21 - Updated: 2025/02/06
Publication Type: Informative
Category Topic: Lawyers and Rights - Academic Publications

Page Content: Synopsis - Introduction - Main

Synopsis: This article discusses a study revealing that U.S. jails and prisons house more mentally ill individuals than hospitals, with states like Texas, Nevada, and Arizona having significantly higher numbers of mentally ill inmates compared to patients in hospitals. The study highlights issues such as increased housing costs for mentally ill inmates, higher recidivism rates, and elevated suicide rates among this population. It also points out that mentally ill inmates are more susceptible to abuse by other prisoners and staff. The article suggests solutions like assisted outpatient treatment, mental health courts, and reformed federal funding and treatment laws to address these challenges. This information is valuable for policymakers, legal professionals, and advocates working to improve the treatment and conditions of incarcerated individuals with mental health issues - Disabled World (DW).

Introduction

According to a new study, states such as Texas, Nevada and Arizona have far greater numbers of mentally ill persons housed in state prisons than in hospitals. The study, "More Mentally Ill Persons are in Jails and Prisons Than Hospitals: A Survey of the States," was released in May by the Treatment Advocacy Center and the National Sheriffs' Association.

Main Content

The study used data from 2004 and 2005 gleaned from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Bureau of Justice Statistics to compare the number of inmates with mental health issues in state jails and prisons with those in hospitals.

The study used a baseline assumption that 16 percent of inmates in each state's penal system had a mental illness. The 16 percent figure is an increase of nearly 300 percent since 1983, when studies estimated the prison population contained only 6.4 percent mentally ill inmates.

The study then compared this number with the total number of patients in each state's mental institutions.

What the numbers showed was that in nearly every case (North Dakota being the sole exception), each state had more mentally ill inmates in jails and prisons than mentally ill patients in hospitals. In fact, the national average was slightly more than 3-to-1 mentally ill inmates in jails in prisons to mentally ill patients in hospitals.

In Texas, the number ballooned to nearly eight times as many mentally ill inmates in jails and prisons to mentally ill patients in hospitals. Only Nevada and Arizona, with close to a 10-to-1 ratio, had worse ratios.

Issues of Housing Mentally Ill Inmates in Jails

Authors of the study outline several problems associated with housing mentally ill persons in jails and prisons rather than hospitals:

• Mentally ill inmates cost more than other prisoners to house.
• The average Texas inmate costs the state approximately $22,000 per year.
• While an inmate with a mental illness costs the state approximately $30,000 to $50,000 per year.
• The rate of recidivism. Since mentally ill inmates generally receive little care for their illness while in jail or prison, they return to jail or prison at a greater rate than the general prison population.

Other issues the study cites include the fact that mentally ill inmates commit suicide at a greater rate than the general prison population, and mentally ill inmates are easier targets for abuse by other prisoners and prison staff.

The study's authors offer solutions, such as assisted outpatient treatment, mental health courts (which offer offenders the choice of treatment or prison), federal money tied to fewer mentally ill prisoners, and reformed federal funding and treatment laws.

Author Credentials: Ian is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Disabled World, a leading resource for news and information on disability issues. With a global perspective shaped by years of travel and lived experience, Ian is a committed proponent of the Social Model of Disability-a transformative framework developed by disabled activists in the 1970s that emphasizes dismantling societal barriers rather than focusing solely on individual impairments. His work reflects a deep commitment to disability rights, accessibility, and social inclusion. To learn more about Ian's background, expertise, and accomplishments, visit his full biography.