Parolees’ physical closeness to health service providers: A study of California parolees.

Hipp, J. R., Jannetta, J., Shah, R., & Turner, S. (2009).
Health & Place, 15, 649–658.

This article was produced by researchers with the Center for Evidence-Based Corrections using data provided by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR). Researchers analyzed data from a sample of 57,107 parolees released from California prisons in either 2005 or 2006, examining the relative physical closeness to government and non-profit providers of general health services, mental health services, and substance use services to parolees based onparolees’ demographic (gender, race/ethnicity, and age) and prior offending characteristics (prior violent and property offenses and days served in a CDCR institution). The primary outcome measure was the number of organizations offering a health services within two miles of the parolees’ homes. Researchers examined demand for providers and found that providers that were geographically close to African–American and Latino parolees have large potential demand, as do providers geographically close to long-term prisoners and sex offenders. These results could pointto inequity in access to services for minority parolees and parolees with greater needs. The results also point to possible differences in access based on rural, suburban, or urban location.

Link: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1353829208001330