Prison Policy Initiative Report Finds Significant Health Outcomes from Past Incarceration
by Michael Dean Thompson
A history of incarceration of any kind has a significant impact on both life expectancy and the health and wellbeing of older adults, according to two studies reviewed by the Prison Policy Initiative (PPI). The studies add to the growing body of evidence that negative incarceration outcomes extend well past the actual incarceration, as detailed in this issue’s cover story. [See: PLN, Oct. 2026, p.1.]
PPI estimates there are currently more than 12 million people who are over the age of 50 and have been formerly incarcerated. Meanwhile, the average age of incarceration has been rising across the country. Prior research on health and mortality impacts had found that formerly incarcerated people had a 13 times greater risk of death than other state residents. In South Carolina, a study had found the two-week period after release had a 40 times greater risk of opioid overdose death. Incarceration has been shown to accelerate physiological aging and shorten life expectancy overall.
The May 2026 publication of a study by Professor Carmen Gutierrez and others in the American Journal of Public Health is the first to show that a history of incarceration increases mortality risk for older adults. It is a nuanced result that differs from simply stating shortened life expectancies. The authors looked only at whether a person had “ever been incarcerated, that is, spent time in jail, prison, juvenile detention center or other correctional facility.” They then controlled for other risk factors such as age, race, ethnicity, childhood health and socioeconomic factors.
Researchers determined that incarceration incurs an 88% higher hazard of premature death. For men who answered they had been incarcerated in some manner, their life expectancy reduced from 82.3 years to 74.8. Women had an astonishing 15-year gap, dropping from 82.9 years to 68. That number, however, was not able to be adjusted for other factors due to the small sample size. Nevertheless, formerly incarcerated adults were more likely to be Black and report childhood housing insecurity, lower educational attainment, fair or poor self-rated health, and have a disability.
Professor Gutierrez had also published with others a study in the Journal of Gerontology in 2024 that showed any past incarceration can be tied to impairments of mobility, vision and activities (such as bathing, dressing and standing up from a chair). It was also tied to increased diagnoses of cancer, depression, chronic lung disease and “heavy” alcohol abuse among people aged 50 and over.
In that study, the participants with an incarceration history were again more likely to be Black, as well as report parental childhood abuse, lower educational attainment and having received public assistance in the last 12 months. Their access to healthcare was also more likely to be through the emergency department while having either Medicaid or no health insurance and have experienced an overnight hospital stay in the past 12 months.
PPI argues that this is further evidence incarceration is a social determinant of health and should be included in assessments of public health. More than 12 million formerly incarcerated people over the age of 50 means approximately 1 in 15 American adults faces a greater risk of death.
Source: Prison Policy Initiative
As a digital subscriber to Prison Legal News, you can access full text and downloads for this and other premium content.
Already a subscriber? Login