By Lauren Brinkley-Rubinstein, Ph.D., in the UNC department of social medicine, finds that people who were held in restrictive housing while serving time in prison face a substantial increased risk of death after their release. Oct 4, 2019 for UNC Health Care and UNC School of Medicine. 

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – October 4, 2019 – A new study led by researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has found that being held in restrictive housing (i.e., solitary confinement) is associated with an increased risk of death after a person is released from prison.

Incarcerated individuals who were placed in restrictive housing in North Carolina from 2000 to 2015 were 24 percent more likely to die in the first year after their release, compared to those who were not held in restrictive housing. In addition, people held in restrictive housing were 78 percent more likely to die from suicide, 54 percent more likely to die from homicide, and 127 percent more likely to die from an opioid overdose in the first two weeks after their release. Further, the number of restrictive housing placements and spending more than 14 consecutive days in restrictive housing were associated with further increase in the risk of death and re-incarceration.  
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