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Task force flags screening gaps in local jails, notes LDH–DOC screening partnership and funding barriers
Summary
Task force members heard that Louisiana’s DOC–LDH screening began in 2008, expanded in 2019, uses an opt-out model with low refusal rates, but many local jails lack screening capacity or treatment funding; members urged exploring scalable, low-cost education and provider-based outreach.
Task-force members reviewed how Louisiana and other states approach STI testing in correctional settings and identified a key implementation gap: local jails. Chair described the state’s long-running partnership with the Department of Corrections, noting intake screening began in late 2008 and expanded in 2019 to include population-level screening for hepatitis C, syphilis and hepatitis B.
On the mechanics of testing, the chair said the model is opt-out and voluntary: "People incarcerated individuals do have the right to refuse the testing," and refusal rates have been "around just 5 percent or so," meaning the majority accept screening. Members agreed that many state facilities can screen but that local jails—where people are often in and out quickly—lack consistent mechanisms to provide testing and, critically, to cover treatment costs and expensive medications such as hepatitis C antivirals and some HIV therapies.
Ayesha summarized national variation: some states test at intake, on symptoms, by request, upon exit, or not at all; mandated testing tied to convictions exists in a subset of states. Members discussed data challenges when comparing prison-population rankings because counts may reflect where prisons are located rather than per-capita prevalence. Task force members cited a 2023 national snapshot of 36,242 people in custody for Louisiana and an approximate annual ‘‘in and out’’ jail touchpoint estimate of roughly 80,000.
Members recommended the report explicitly identify local jails as a gap area and examine funding strategies to expand screening and link people to treatment after release; the group also discussed low-cost outreach options such as provider handouts and using emergency rooms, clinics and pharmacy access points to disseminate testing information.
