People incarcerated in Connecticut often wait months to see a specialist, even after prison doctors have determined they need treatment, according to the state's independent correction ombuds.
As of mid-March, more than 1,500 people in prison who need off-site treatment were waiting for an appointment, the Office of the Correction Ombuds (OCO) found.
Everyone on the list had already been referred to a specialist and approved for treatment by corrections medical staff, yet some had been waiting more than two years, according to OCO.
In a new report released Tuesday, Correction Ombuds DeVaughn Ward criticized the state for prolonged delays in scheduling medically necessary care. He also faulted the department for limited transparency in tracking wait times and the absence of a plan to fix the problem.
The delays are inconsistent with DOC's own directive to provide quality health care to people in custody that is comparable to what they would receive outside of prison, the report found.
Ward, an attorney who has represented incarcerated people in lawsuits filed against the state, said the breakdown in delivery of medical services also puts the state at legal risk.
"You could make the argument we are very closely approaching the violation of some constitutional standards if we do not act quickly," he said.
Ward's office issued subpoenas compelling three senior DOC officials to testify at a public hearing on May 12, marking the first time the office has used that power, which lawmakers granted last year. A follow-up hearing is anticipated for June 15.
A spokesperson for DOC said Tuesday no one from the department was available to answer questions about the report's findings. In an email, the department pointed to a significant and growing shortage of specialty physicians across the United States as a factor contributing to the backlog.
It noted people under DOC supervision completed an average of 27 outpatient specialty service appointments per day last year, totaling more than 10,000 appointments in 2025.
"Despite the growing shortage of physicians and accompanying longer wait times for appointments in several medical specialty fields, the Department of Correction Health Services Unit will continue to strive to have those who need specialized care receive it as soon as possible," the department wrote.
Mounting scrutiny of DOC
The report comes on the heels of a damning assessment of overall prison conditions released by the ombuds in January. It alleged systemic problems in correctional facilities, including routine staffing shortages, poor sanitation and inconsistent access to health care, nutrition, communication and other services.
In response to the findings, a spokesperson for Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont's administration highlighted recent progress at DOC, but acknowledged the need for improvement.
DOC Commissioner Angel Quiros has since announced he will retire effective May 1. Deputy Commissioner Sharonda Carlos will fill the position on an interim basis.
DOC said previously it strongly objects to Ward's findings. The prison conditions report draws wide-ranging inferences from singular occurrences, and contains unsupported allegations that "appear to serve only to foster an extremely negative perception of the agency," the department said in January.
'Cases are not isolated'
In its new report, OCO described five people in prison who faced long waits for treatment and agreed to share their stories.
One man suffered a knee injury in July 2025, but was still waiting for treatment two months later when a community advocate brought his case to the attention of the correction ombuds. Imaging then showed he had multiple ligament injuries, including tears to the ACL and MCL, and needed physical therapy before he could undergo surgery because his condition worsened while treatment was delayed, according to the report.
Another was waiting to undergo an ultrasound for a hernia in his abdominal wall nearly six months after he was approved for it. DOC had assigned him a Priority 3 designation, meaning he should have been seen within three weeks, according to the report.
OCO also documented the case of Jeffrey Yeaw, an incarcerated man who died March 19, 2026. Yeaw was admitted to the intensive care unit of a local hospital after experiencing a cardiac event on Jan. 11, 2026, according to the report.
A pending appointment list obtained by the ombuds showed Yeaw had been waiting for a cardiology appointment since Jan. 5, 2026, but had not been scheduled for an appointment prior to his death, according to the report.
The cases "are not isolated, but instead reflect broader systemic issues," the report states, including prolonged delays, failure to meet prioritization timeframes and breakdowns in continuity of care.
OCO called on prison officials to schedule all outstanding referrals for an appointment within 30 days, beginning with the oldest and most urgent cases.
It also recommended corrections officials create a triaging procedure to make sure people with pressing needs are seen, implement a tracking system and report on its progress each month.
