For the last two years, Stanford researchers have been partnering with county correctional health officials to understand the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on people living and working in local jails. The study, now published in peer-reviewed journals, identified several barriers to infection control in jails, including inadequate access to face masks, deterrents to testing and symptom-reporting, and mistrust of jail staff. It also found harmful effects of the pandemic on mental health for both incarcerated people and staff. For incarcerated people, worsened mental health was related to jail policies that restricted visitation and out-of-cell time, highlighting the damaging effects of prolonged restrictive measures on an already isolated population. Read more about the study and its policy recommendations here.”