By Rachel Lippmann, St. Louis Public Radio
St. Louis – The American Civil Liberties Union has filed suit against the city of St. Louis and Correctional Medical Services, the private company that provides health care to inmates in the jails.
The ACLU suit, filed Thursday, alleges that an HIV-positive inmate was denied his medications for several days, despite repeated complaints and a prescription from his personal physician. The inmate, who was recently released on bail, does not want to be named because he faces future jail time and does not want his HIV status known.
"We have the records from the jail themselves of him complaining in writing that he wasn't receiving his medication and even the chart that shows when medication's given shows missed dosages," said ACLU legal director Tony Rothert.
For an HIV patient, any break in the drug regimen can be dangerous, Rothert said. He said medical indicators doctors use to measure HIV worsened after the inmate did not receive his medications.
"HIV is a tricky disease, and you have to keep on your medications, and you shouldn't even miss one dose," Rothert said. "When you miss even one dose, it builds up resistance to the combination of medicines, and eventually that will lead to your death."
CMS provided a statement promoting the quality of its care, but said it cannot comment on specific inmates because of confidentially restrictions.
The city had no comment on the lawsuit.
Both the city and CMS are also facing lawsuits in the deaths of three other inmates.
This most recent development follows a March 2009 ACLU report alleging medical neglect.