Shocking News – BOP Healthcare ‘Unacceptable’ – Update for September 15, 2025

We post news and comment on federal criminal justice issues, focused primarily on trial and post-conviction matters, legislative initiatives, and sentencing issues.

DOG BITES MAN

In journalism, a ‘dog bites man’ story is one that is completely unsurprising and unremarkable. Last week, in a perfect example of this genre, the Dept. of Justice Office of Inspector General reported that yet another Bureau of Prisons facility was providing grossly substandard healthcare to inmates.

On Wednesday, the OIG issued a report on its unannounced inspection of FDC SeaTac, the detention center located about a thousand yards south of SeaTac Airport between Seattle and Tacoma, Washington. The inspection was conducted under the OIG’s authority granted in the Federal Prison Oversight Act, which requires regular independent reviews of BOP facilities.

The inspection, which occurred last December, found only three out of the FDC’s nine nursing positions and one of two pharmacist positions were filled. “At the time of our inspection,” the Report said, “10 of 20 Health Services Department positions were vacant, including the Clinical Director position (which had been vacant for at least 18 months). Moreover, based on the BOP’s own staffing projection tool, the institution appears to require a doubling in the size of its Health Services Department—from an authorized level of 20 positions to 40 positions—to meet its healthcare needs.”

The report was the sixth issued by the OIG on unannounced inspections of BOP facilities, all of which were unstinting in their criticism of BOP healthcare. A report that yet another BOP facility was not meeting inmate medical needs was

Even the FDC SeaTac Health Services Department leadership called health services staffing a crisis. The short staffing meant that Health Services “had to prioritize the provision of emergency care to inmates and we identified extensive delays in care for both routine and serious health concerns. For example, we identified concerns with FDC SeaTac’s ability to provide medical care to inmates who submit medical care requests. We selected a sample of 29 medical requests that appeared to be among the most serious, including for respiratory distress and severe pain, and found that 62 percent (18 of 29) were never addressed by a healthcare provider. We also determined that FDC SeaTac was unable to provide timely outside medical appointments for inmates with conditions that could not be addressed at the institution.”

As of November 2024, SeaTac had a backlog of 480 blood draw orders more than 30 days past due, again due to staffing shortages. The Report said, “Health Services Department employees told us that without blood test results they could not appropriately monitor the health of inmates with chronic conditions, such as diabetes, or diagnose new illnesses. For example, more than half of diabetic inmates whose records we reviewed had not received necessary diabetic testing within recommended time frames.”

OIG staff also identified unsafe practices unrelated to staffing. Crushed pills were stored loosely in plastic bags. Exam tables were filthy. Hazardous medical waste bins overflowed. Expired medications were still in use and lab specimens were left unrefrigerated. Insects crawled through clinical areas, and staff food was stored alongside medical supplies.

Writing in Forbes, Walter Pavlo said, “The inspection paints a picture not just of underfunding but of dangerously neglected standards of care.”

Sen Patty Murray (D-WA) called the conditions at the detention center unacceptable. “Individuals in federal detention should not be forced to risk their lives because they can’t get urgent medical issues addressed,” she said in a prepared statement. “I’m reaching out to the Bureau of Prisons about this report—much more needs to be done to make sure people in federal custody can get the health care they need.”

Meanwhile, last Friday, DOJ announced more than 50 new measures aimed at reducing suicides among prisoners in federal custody. The announcement follows recommendations from a department-wide working group tasked with developing strategies to address suicide in prison and jail.

While federal facilities record a lower suicide rate compared to state prisons and local jails, officials said, DOJ must work to prevent every possible death. The new framework, outlined in the Report on Actions to Reduce the Risk of Suicide by Adults in Federal Custody and Advance a Culture of Safety, sets five objectives: expanding information sharing, improving access to mental health care, fostering healthier facility environments, reducing opportunities for self-harm, and forming policy through data-driven research.

Spokesman-Review, Federal inspection finds an inmate healthcare ‘crisis’ at SeaTac detention center amid health worker shortage (September 10, 2025)

DOJ Inspector General, Inspection of the Federal Bureau of Prisons’ Federal Detention Center SeaTac (September 10, 2025)

Federal Prison Oversight Act, Pub.L. 118-71, 138 Stat. 1492 (July 25, 2024).

Shore News Network, Justice Department launches sweeping reforms to curb suicides in federal custody (September 12, 2025)

Forbes, Troubling Findings At FDC SeaTac: A 2025 OIG Inspection Report (September 10, 2025)

~ Thomas L. Root