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Variety in the Heartland |
Aging Death Row Inmates Costing State
01/30/12 WGC/AP
Kentucky's death row is aging and it is costing the state. The 35 condemned inmates have an average age of 50, which is 14 years older than inmates not condemned to death.
While the state doesn't keep separate statistics for the death row population, medical expenses for the Department of Corrections rose each year since 2008, from $49.1 million that year to $54.8 million in fiscal year 2011.
Corrections spokeswoman Lisa Lamb said death row inmates get the same care as the other 23,000 inmates, including medications and regular access to doctors.
The non-profit Human Rights Watch reports that nationwide, 8% of the prison population in 2010 was 55 or older. Medical parole are not an option for inmates sentenced to die, so Kentucky is left paying those inmates' medical expenses.
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