Page - 370 - in VULNERABLE - The Law, Policy and Ethics of COVID-19

VULNERABLE370 prisons, without first depopulating to the extent possible.8 Second, depopulation must be done safely, while providing individuals with adequate community supports upon release. Third, prevention proto- cols following the public health agencies’ guidelines must be adopted and implemented in all institutions.9 Some prison systems in Canada failed to respond adequately to the pandemic, leading to serious consequences for incarcerated peo- ple and the community. In the next sections, after providing a brief overview of the heightened vulnerability of prisoners to COVID-19, I will critique the prison responses to the pandemic, both from a rights and public health perspective. I will conclude with a set of recommen- dations that should be considered to avoid future crises in prisons. Demographic and Institutional Risk Factors Prison populations are at higher risk of contracting COVID-19 and of developing severe complications. The prison environment heightens these risks and prisons are ill prepared to prevent or address infec- tions among those in custody.10 Most of the marginalized groups discussed in this book are overrepresented in prisons: individuals with serious health issues, including physical and mental disability, people living in poverty, Indigenous people and other racial minorities, and homeless peo- ple.11 Due to their pre-existing social marginalization, in addition to 8. See e.g. Sean Fine, “Calls to Release Some Prisoners Intensify as First Known Coronavirus Outbreak Announced in Canadian Prison”, The Globe  and  Mail (30 March 2020), online: <perma.cc/J57V-EUQ3>; Jane Philpott & Kim Pate, “Time Running out to Protect Prisoners and Prison Staff from Calamity”, Policy  Options (31 March 2020), online: <perma.cc/675U-GTJL>; “UNODC, WHO, UNAIDS and OHCHR Joint Statement on COVID-19 in Prisons and Other Closed Settings”, (13 May 2020), online: World  Health  Organization <perma.cc/S4KM-H7E7> [WHO]. 9. “Interim Guidance on Management of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Correctional and Detention Facilities” (23 March 2020), online (pdf): Centers for Disease Control and Prevention <perma.cc/GR4Q-N7UB>; WHO, supra note 8. 10. Talka Burki, “Prisons Are ‘in no Way Equipped’ to Deal with COVID-19” (2020) 395:10234 Lancet at 1411; Laura Hawks et al, “COVID-19 in Prisons and Jails in the United States” [2020] JAMA Intern Medicine. 11. Law Council of Australia, Prisoners and Detainees, Final Report Part 1 (Canberra: Law Council of Australia, August 2018) at 6; Canada, Office of the Correctional Investigator, Aging  and  Dying  in  Prison:  An  Investigation  into  the  Experiences  of  Older  Individuals  in  Federal  Custody, (Ottawa: Office of the Correctional Investigator, 2019) at 20, 27; Senate Committee on Human Rights, Interim  Report–Study  on  the  Human  Rights  of  Federally-Sentenced  Persons:  The  Most  Basic  Human  Right  Is  to  Be