COVID-19, Mental Illness, and Incarceration in the United States: A Systematic Review, 2019–2021

Abstract

In 2019, the viral pandemic known as COVID-19 touched and indelibly impacted the global community, including the United States. The impact of COVID-19 was particularly onerous for the US’s incarcerated. Not only is the United States the leading incarcerator in the world, but the the carceral system represents the nation’s largest de facto mental health treatment setting. The carceral system is overrepresented by people of color, people with disabilities, and people of lower socioeconomic status—with great overlap between these populations. In combination with tough-on-crime policies, the US prison population also now finds itself aging, a process accelerated by confinement. The present systematic literature review describes the current state of peer-reviewed scholarship addressing the impact of COVID-19 on mental illness, incarceration, and their intersection in the United States. To be considered for inclusion, articles (1) were based in the United States or, if a global study, explicitly inclusive of the United States; (2) addressed COVID-19 and mental illness, COVID-19 and US incarceration, or COVID-19 and mental illness and US incarceration; and (3) were published or in-press between December 2019 and October 2021, as either a peer-reviewed commentary or research article in an academic journal. The final literature sample yielded 34 peer-reviewed articles. Ten themes and accompanying figures were developed within each of the three intersections: Intersection #1, COVID-19 and mental illness; Intersection #2, COVID-19 and US incarceration; and Intersection #3, COVID-19 and mental illness and US incarceration. Implications for respective US policies, programs, and systems are discussed.

Fear of COVID-19, Mental Health and Resilient Coping in Young Adult Male Inmates: A Portuguese Cross-Sectional Study

“…Finally, the COVID-19 pandemic deepened “pre-pandemic pains of imprisonment, increasing the ‘tightness,’ ‘depth’ and ‘weight’ of participant’s time in custody” [ 64 ] (p. 218). There is widespread agreement that jails and penitentiaries are often ill-equipped to meet the needs of inmates with mental health concerns [ 65 , 66 ]. Offering tele-mental health services might be an excellent strategy to meet the requirements of inmates while also boosting rapport building based on mutual respect and trust [ 65 ].…”

“…There is widespread agreement that jails and penitentiaries are often ill-equipped to meet the needs of inmates with mental health concerns [ 65 , 66 ]. Offering tele-mental health services might be an excellent strategy to meet the requirements of inmates while also boosting rapport building based on mutual respect and trust [ 65 ].…”