When Steven Caldwell-Bey wasn’t able to get a regular refill for his blood thinners, he began taking one pill a day instead of two to stretch them out. The problem, he said, is that it’s been difficult to get medical attention at Jefferson City Correctional Center because so many nurses have quit.
This article was published in partnership with The Marshall Project - St. Louis, a nonprofit news team covering Missouri’s criminal justice systems. Subscribe to their email list, and follow The Marshall Project on Instagram, Reddit and YouTube.
Other men serving time there said they haven’t been able to get proper care for conditions ranging from diabetes to cancer.
The issues came to a head after a group of nurses walked out in protest of the working conditions in October.
The Marshall Project - St. Louis spoke to over 40 people who have worked or lived at the prison. They reported rampant problems, including going weeks without medication, a lack of medical attention in solitary confinement and monthslong waits to get treatment or follow-up appointments for serious issues.
Former and current staff at the prison lay the blame on Centurion Health, a private company that was awarded a contract in 2021 worth over $1 billion to provide health care for incarcerated people in Missouri. The state had sought a company to provide primary and specialty health care, medications, personnel and supplies and coordinate hospitalizations, the request for proposal said.
But staffing problems began to worsen in recent months after some personnel concerns. Employees allege that Centurion forced them to work long hours and extra shifts, creating a dangerous environment for them and their patients.
Dana Long was a nurse in the infirmary, where sometimes she said she was caring for more than 20 patients on her own when there should have been at least an additional nurse. That meant juggling tasks such as administering IV antibiotics, taking vitals, changing wound dressings, helping those who were incontinent and, when she had time, updating medical records.
Patients were in danger, she said.
Long is one of several nurses who quit in early October. More have left since then.
A corrections employee who asked not to be named out of fear of retaliation said the situation has gotten to the point where it’s causing unrest because people are frustrated. Daaron Harris, who is incarcerated, said people are feeling helpless, which creates hostility among the men and toward staff.
Missouri Department of Corrections officials declined a request for an interview with Warden Kelly Morriss. Department spokeswoman Karen Pojmann acknowledged that several health care professionals left in a short period, adding that Centurion brought in staff from other prisons to fill the gaps when the departures happened. She also said there is a team that monitors medical services.
Pojmann referred other questions about staffing to Centurion. Officials there did not respond to repeated requests for comment.
Rep. Gregg Bush, a Democrat from Columbia with a career in nursing, said he was beyond troubled by the allegations. He said he supports a review by the Missouri Legislature of any contractor that may not be meeting expectations.
In its contract proposal, Centurion officials boasted that its “corporate leadership team invests heavily in recruiting and human resources management systems to ensure full staffing.” According to the company’s website, there were 19 vacancies in mid-November of this year. Those included openings for a director of nursing and registered nurses, as well as a medication technician and mental health staff.
Caylin Marriott, a medical scheduler who worked at the facility in 2024, said she begged Centurion officials for help. A nurse who worked there until October, who didn’t want to be named because she’s looking for a new job, said their calls for staffing support were ignored. Nurses would go in for a shift without knowing when they would be able to leave because the next person might not show up and there are strict rules about leaving patients unattended, she said. Others said they were fired when they refused to work extra shifts.
In a resignation letter, Marriott said there was a toxic environment and she couldn’t let her mental health suffer longer. Another nurse wrote in her resignation letter that she left because “basic medical care and human dignity were routinely compromised.”
To get medical attention, people in prison fill out a health services request form. Ariane Todd, who worked at the facility until January, said they were “months and months and months” behind on addressing the forms. Marriott said there were stacks that had not been reviewed. People in solitary confinement went even longer without medical attention because their slips didn’t get picked up there on a regular basis, she added.
The forms for those outside of solitary are collected during sick call, a designated time they can seek medical attention.
Nineteen incarcerated men who spoke to The Marshall Project - St. Louis reported problems accessing care because sick call was canceled for weeks at a time. Several incarcerated men and corrections employees at the prison pinpointed that it had been over a month since it was last held.
A Centurion employee who didn’t want to be named out of a fear of retaliation said she’s seen patients who didn’t get proper care for infections or receive their cancer medication.
The men in prison acknowledged that medical staff were overwhelmed. Most said the nurses were well-qualified and some went out of their way to help, though a couple were unprofessional.
Two dozen incarcerated men told The Marshall Project - St. Louis that they had a difficult time getting their medication. Joseph Wilson, 52, fears he could have an embolism because he has gone several days without his blood thinners.
“I really go into a panic,” he said.
Wilson shared a journal entry dated Sept. 10 that read, “So I’ve been out of my Eliquis since 9/6/25. I have done all I’m supposed to on my end but they haven’t issued me my monthly dosage cards. My Leg has begun to swell again.”
Others reported not being able to get insulin, blood pressure medication or inhalers for various breathing disorders. Several said it was a long battle to get medical items like orthopedic shoes. Two former staff members confirmed there was an issue getting medical shoes ordered for patients.
Many of the men said they relied on their loved ones to call and put pressure on Centurion or the Missouri Department of Corrections. In a November email, Tammy Mogab pleaded for help for her brother, a detainee there who was not getting his insulin.
“I am very aware of the critical shortage of healthcare workers at JCCC but the essential medical needs of residents continue,” Mogab wrote.
Adequate health care is a longstanding issue in many prisons, but Deandre Pointer, who has been incarcerated for over two decades, said he’s never seen it this bad. He said there have been days when he hasn’t gotten his insulin and his blood sugar has bottomed out.
Many of the men, especially those with chronic ailments, said a lack of medical attention means they are left in physical pain. The conditions also take a mental toll. One man said he was scared his liver cancer was spreading, but he hasn’t gotten an appointment to be seen yet. Those with lengthy sentences said they worry about getting older in the prison, which houses more than 1,830 people.
Douglas Maupin, 69, said he got sepsis when a bleeding ulcer turned into an infection. He was transferred to a local hospital for a time before returning to the infirmary.
“It’s crazy down here,” he said.
At least 14 of the incarcerated men interviewed by The Marshall Project - St. Louis said they submitted complaints that didn’t go anywhere. Joe Becker filed grievances when his finger was injured in 2021. When those didn’t help, he filed a lawsuit in July 2023. Court records show he received at least a dozen denials. Becker is one of several men who have open lawsuits regarding medical care at Jefferson City Correctional Center. Other cases involve allegations about scabies treatment, dental care and a catheterization procedure.
Eugene Burrell has filed five complaints in the past year or so. He has also written to the assistant warden and the Department of Justice seeking help getting orthopedic shoes, according to documents reviewed by The Marshall Project - St. Louis. In a grievance dated Oct. 24, he wrote, “JCCC Medical Dept. has canceled ‘sick call’ for several weeks this month citing ‘staff shortage.’ I’ve attended three weeks hoping to obtain health care & a follow-up appt. to no avail.” In another complaint, he wrote that the lack of health care access “equates to neglect on behalf of the Department.”
In February, Zachary Smith submitted a complaint saying he had not received refills for his thyroid medication. In a response five months later, a nurse wrote that she had “discovered that all items have been ordered and will be issued as soon as they arrive.”
Eugene Crider, 56, said he was diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome, a neurological disorder that can be fatal, and has been in the infirmary for over a year. At first, there was an aide who helped him, he said, but she’s gone. Nurses give him medicine to help him sleep, but otherwise, he relies on prisoners who have jobs in the infirmary to help him with daily tasks such as getting dressed and eating, though there are restrictions on what they can do to help.
Crider said he’s been “laying here, day in and day out.” He said he wanted to know if Centurion and the Department of Corrections officials were inept or just didn’t care.
Lawmakers have proposed a bill for the 2026 legislative session to create a corrections oversight office, which would include monitoring health care and making recommendations to improve medical care.
