By UCSF White Coats for Black Lives, July 26, 2020
To Governor Gavin Newsom and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation:
As doctors, nurses and healthcare workers of California, we write to you today in outrage at the conditions of the California Prison system. With 2,401 COVID-19 cases and 17 deaths, the outbreak at San Quentin is now the second largest in the nation. This is a public health crisis — one that impacts not only those Californians who are currently experiencing incarceration, but all of us. From the start of the pandemic, public health officials and community advocates have anticipated the dire situation we now face. Our slow response to these warnings, both then and now, will be remembered as one of the most flagrant acts of gross medical negligence in our lifetimes.
While we applaud the recent decision to release 8,000 individuals, this action is woefully insufficient to address the crisis we now face. We urge you to begin the process of reducing the overall prison population to below 50% of current capacity, to halt all transfers between correctional facilities, and to follow public health guidance.
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