Federal Judge Orders Takeover of Arizona Prison Healthcare

Ruling cites years of inadequate medical and mental health care for inmates

Published on Feb. 26, 2026

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A federal judge has ordered the takeover of healthcare operations in Arizona's state-run prisons, citing years of poor medical and mental health care that has led to suffering and preventable deaths among inmates. The judge will appoint an independent official to run the prison healthcare system after the state failed to comply with court-ordered changes.

Why it matters

This ruling is a significant intervention to address longstanding issues with the quality of healthcare provided to inmates in Arizona's prison system. It reflects the judge's view that the state has repeatedly failed to uphold its constitutional obligations to ensure adequate medical and mental health services, putting prisoners' lives at risk.

The details

U.S. District Judge Roslyn Silver issued the order on Thursday, after previously ruling in 2022 that Arizona had violated prisoners' rights by providing inadequate care. The judge said the state has not made meaningful progress on court-ordered changes over nearly 14 years of litigation, leaving inmates 'exposed to an intolerable grave and immediate threat of continuing harm and suffering.' Lawyers representing the prisoners had requested this 'receivership' remedy, arguing the system remains broken despite the state's claims of progress.

  • The judge's 2022 verdict concluded that Arizona had violated prisoners' rights.
  • The state was ordered to overhaul medical and mental health services for prisoners in a 2014 settlement, but was soon accused of failing to keep many of those promises.
  • In September 2019, lawyers representing the prisoners made a similar request for a takeover, but the judge said she would revive that possibility if the state failed to comply.

The players

U.S. District Judge Roslyn Silver

The federal judge who ordered the takeover of healthcare operations in Arizona's state-run prisons.

David Fathi

One of the lawyers representing the prisoners, who said the decision 'brings hope that the preventable suffering and deaths that have haunted Arizona's prison system for over a decade can finally end.'

Arizona Department of Corrections

The state agency responsible for the prison healthcare system, which has been criticized for years over the poor quality of medical and mental health care provided to inmates.

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What’s next

The state and attorneys representing prisoners have 60 days to submit a list of candidates to run health and mental health care operations in Arizona's prisons.

The takeaway

This court-ordered takeover of Arizona's prison healthcare system is a drastic but necessary step to address the state's longstanding failure to provide constitutionally adequate medical and mental health services to inmates, which has led to preventable suffering and deaths. It remains to be seen whether an independent authority can succeed where the state has repeatedly fallen short.