The lawsuit, filed by attorneys with the American Civil Liberties Union and other advocates in U.S. District Court in Nashville, says the Tennessee Department of Correction officials knowingly denying inmates care for their hepatitis C, also known as HCV, constitutes cruel and unusual punishment. It alleges the department is denying care because the best available medication is too expensive.
"In reality, (department officials) ignore the medical needs of (inmates) and class members in order to save costs. (The department's) written policies for HCV diagnosis, assessment and treatment utilize outdated standards of care and normalize the practice of refusing treatment for unjust and medically unsound reasons," the lawsuit states.
Inmates Charles Graham, also known as Charles Stevenson, and Russell L. Davis are named as plaintiffs in the lawsuit. Attorneys representing the inmates include Thomas Castelli, the ACLU-TN legal director; Karla Campbell of Nashville-based law firm Branstetter, Stranch and Jennings; and Elizabeth Logsdon of advocacy organization Disability Rights Tennessee. No Exceptions Prison Collective, an inmate advocacy organization, also helped compile the lawsuit.
"Incarcerating people under conditions that erode their health, safety and human dignity amounts to cruel and unusual punishment, which not only has devastating long-term effects for those individuals, but which undermines the purported purpose of a rehabilitative criminal justice system," Castelli said in a news release.
They are seeking what's known as class-action status for the case: If successful, that would mean every inmate infected with hepatitis C also could be eligible to receive treatment in the future. The lawsuit names as defendants new department Commissioner Tony Parker, department Assistant Commissioner of Rehabilitative Services Dr. Marina Cadreche and department Medical Director Dr. Kenneth Williams.
