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Vermont officials tackle recent rise in deaths, health concerns in prisons

Prison door
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This hour, Vermont Edition looks into what state officials are doing to tackle health concerns in local prisons.

Live, call-in discussion: Though the current prison population in Vermont has dropped by nearly a third from 2015 levels, rates of chronic illness among the incarcerated increased by nearly 50% over the same period. Today, 1,000 of Vermont’s 1,300 incarcerated people are living with at least one chronic illness, and many suffer from multiple illnesses simultaneously.

This hour, a closer look at health care in Vermont's prisons.

Our guests:

  • Nicholas Deml, commissioner of the Vermont Department of Corrections
  • Dr. Mark Levine, commissioner of the Vermont Department of Health
  • Matthew Valerio, defender general for state of Vermont

Broadcast on Wednesday, May 10, 2023, at noon; rebroadcast at 7 p.m.

Have questions, comments or tips? Send us a message or check us out on Instagram.

Corrected: May 9, 2023 at 5:11 PM EDT
This post has been updated to reflect Matthew Valerio's correct title.
Mikaela Lefrak is the host and senior producer of Vermont Edition. Her stories have aired nationally on Morning Edition, All Things Considered, Weekend Edition, Marketplace, The World and Here & Now. A seasoned local reporter, Mikaela has won two regional Edward R. Murrow awards and a Public Media Journalists Association award for her work.
Tedra worked on Vermont Edition as a producer and editor from 2022 to 2024.