LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — One in every five state and federal prisoners in the United States has tested positive for the coronavirus, a rate more than four times as high as the general population....
I tried looking up the average population age vs. average inmate age - but it turns out it's a much harder question because they're actually both around 39, except that there's almost no one under 18 in prison (while ~24% of the US population is under 18) and the age distribution in general is different...
In short, Covid mortality under 65 is ~0.1-1.5%. Over 65 it's 5-15%. 19% of Americans are over 65, while only 2% of imprisoned Americans are . Put another way, among US Covid deaths, 20% are under 65, 80% are 65 or older. So the people most at risk just aren't in prison.
I figured the younger age would be made up for by poorer living conditions and possibly restricted access to care
Yeah, good point - I have no idea how much of an impact that has. There's probably a whole paper you could publish on this. Inmate population mortality minus average population mortality, corrected by age = size of prison conditions effect on health.
I tried looking up the average population age vs. average inmate age - but it turns out it's a much harder question because they're actually both around 39, except that there's almost no one under 18 in prison (while ~24% of the US population is under 18) and the age distribution in general is different...
If you're curious download this PDF (it's actually about the increasingly older US prison population) - figure 5 on page 4 compares the incarcerated vs. free population pyramids. And here's mortality from Covid by age in Italy and in China. (And since the PDF is about state prisons, here's federal prison data - it's similar.)
In short, Covid mortality under 65 is ~0.1-1.5%. Over 65 it's 5-15%. 19% of Americans are over 65, while only 2% of imprisoned Americans are . Put another way, among US Covid deaths, 20% are under 65, 80% are 65 or older. So the people most at risk just aren't in prison.
Yeah, good point - I have no idea how much of an impact that has. There's probably a whole paper you could publish on this. Inmate population mortality minus average population mortality, corrected by age = size of prison conditions effect on health.