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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 joined Vermont Public in 2021 as co-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 joined Vermont Public as a producer for Vermont Edition in January 2022. Before moving to Vermont, she was a journalist in New York City for 20 years. She has a master’s degree in journalism from New York University.