PILP brought this lawsuit on behalf of Anthony Happel, who was denied treatment for opioid use disorder when he incarcerated at Venango County Prison.
Despite lingering outdated views about opioid use disorder (OUD), the scientific and medical communities are in agreement: OUD is a chronic disease. Like other chronic diseases, it is treated with medication. While most understand that someone with diabetes or heart disease should receive medication while incarcerated, it is far too common for jails to refuse to provide proper medical treatment to people with OUD. Many jails and prisons will only provide certain forms of medication, which are not effective, or will only provide medication to people who were previously prescribed it. However, both the U.S. Constitution and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) require that all jails and prisons provide an individualized evaluation of each person with OUD to determine what treatment they need.
At the time of his arrest, Mr. Happel was in treatment and doing well. He was prescribed buprenorphine, which controlled his cravings for opioids and allowed him to abstain from use.
Despite finding a way to provide medical treatment to pregnant people with OUD, Venango County forced all others with OUD incarcerated in its jail to undergo withdrawal and go without treatment.
Mr. Happel filed this lawsuit under the Americans with Disabilities Act and the U.S. Constitution seeking to vindicate his right to adequate medical care which was violated while he was in jail. Since PILP’s lawsuit was filed, the Prison Board in Venango County approved a policy change offering MOUD to all people with OUD. PILP settled its lawsuit with Venango County and other Defendants.