Report: 95 percent of prison population has mental health, substance use disorders

CT Sentencing Commission aims for data to assist policymakers
A 2023 report from the Connecticut Sentencing Commission found that 95.5 percent of the incarcerated population currently or previously had mental health or substance abuse disorders or both.
The Department of Corrections reported 32 percent of prisoners currently need treatment for diagnoses such as post-traumatic stress disorder, mood disorders, antisocial personality disorder, and schizophrenia.
The data also showed 74 percent of Connecticut’s 10,000 inmates required treatment for substance abuse problems and 24 percent of the population had both mental and substance use disorders.
“It really has reached crisis levels and it has for years now,” said Alex Tsarkov, the Sentencin...