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Control Units and Oppression
By Sadot Williams
March 2008
[Writing from Prison Index] [Home]
The administration at S.C.I. Greene, the SuperMax
facility in Southwestern Pennsylvania is keeping is 500
plus bed Long Term Solitary Confinement Unit filled to
maximum capacity with over 90% Hispanic and African
American prisoners, for financial gains in a deal
worked out with PHS- Prison Health Services, the
privatized health care provider for the PA Department
of Corrections!
Prisoners locked down in the long term confinement
unit are forced to pay high sick call fees for
over-the-counter meds that are sold to general
population prisoners at Commissary for a fraction of
the cost of going to sick call! Under PA-DOC policy a
prisoner in long term confinement needs antacid tabs,
cold medication or foot ointment, they must pay $5.00
to be seen at sick call and then $5.00 must be paid
for the meds. The same over the counter medication is
sold to the general population prisoners for less than
$3.50 each at Commissary.
Long term confinement prisoners are not permitted to
have prison work assignments to help them pay for basic
needs like toiletries.
For those who are not blessed to receive financial
support form loved ones, debt to Prison Health Services
and the PA DOC can accumulate quickly.
Most grievances to the administration about this
unwritten policy have gone unanswered and for the few
grievances that a response was given, vague, open-ended
form statements are the reply.
This is just one of the dozens of oppressive acts
that takes place daily in the S.C.I. Greene Supermax
facility long term solitary confinement unit.
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