Debate Surrounds Inmate Vaccinations

Inmates across the country are at higher risk to both catch and die from COVID-19. Some people think that, because of this, they should get the vaccine; others think that since they have committed crimes they don’t deserve it (photo courtesy AP News).

Prisons across the world have been hit by COVID harder than imagined this year. It is impossible for inmates to be able to social distance while being in their cells, close to others at all times, and sharing bathrooms. Several inmates have serious health problems, and their families are very worried about them staying healthy. The big problem right now is inmates are not eligible to get the first wave of the vaccines, even though they are at very high risk. Some people think that they should not get it because they committed a crime, and others think they should be treated and put into categories like everyone else. Nearly 249,000 inmates have tested positive this year, and 1,700 of them have died.

The cases in prisons keep rising and more people are dying each day. The biggest ethical dilemma is the fact that there is a limited number of vaccines. If a vaccine is given to an inmate, it is taken away from someone else, but if a vaccine is not given to an inmate they may die.