Medical Services

Individuals in the custody of the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) have access to medical, dental, and mental health services.

• Medical Services: Medical staff is onsite at all correctional facilities. Incarcerated individuals have access to medical services on a daily basis through each facility’s sick call procedure. Facilities differ in the level of medical services they may be able to provide. Incarcerated individuals with special medical needs (short term or long term) may be transferred to a facility that can better meet those needs. For the chronic or terminally ill, DOCCS provides Regional Medical Units (RMUs) in selected facilities across the state. When medically necessary, incarcerated individuals may be transported to a community hospital for emergency treatment or other medical services.

• Dental Services: Incarcerated individuals receive periodic dental checkups. Follow-up or emergency treatment is provided as needed. As with medical services, incarcerated individuals may be transferred to another facility or to a community hospital for treatment when necessary.

• Mental Health Services: DOCCS partners with the New York State Office of Mental Health (OMH) in providing special programs along a continuum of care for incarcerated individuals with a mental illness. Upon reception into the DOCCS system and throughout incarceration as necessary, incarcerated individuals can be referred and assessed by OMH staff to determine the amount of mental health services required and are then assigned to facilities where that level of service is available. Although not on site at every facility, each facility has a procedure in place for incarcerated individuals to request and receive such services. Services include crisis intervention, individual short and long term counseling, group counseling, and special programs and services for those who are eligible.

PLEASE NOTE: Incarcerated individual health information is considered confidential and its release is protected by the Federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA) Law, the New York State Public Health Law, and the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision policies. Privacy requirements do not allow the disclosure of specific health information without incarcerated individual authorization. All requests for incarcerated individual health information should be directed to the health services unit at the facility.

Request for mental health information should be addressed to the facility/Satellite Mental Health Unit at the attention of the Unit Chief. If the facility does not have a mental health presence, the request should be forwarded to the:

Office of Mental Health
Bureau of Forensic Services
44 Holland Avenue
Albany, NY 12229

Separate written releases must be obtained for disclosing substance abuse treatment information in accordance with 42 CFR Part 2 and DOCCS Directive #2010 "Departmental Records".

In accordance with Department directives, an incarcerated individual must sign a Release of Drug and Alcohol Abuse Records Form #1079 or Form #1080 to authorize release of alcohol and drug treatment records.