BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) - The ACLU of Vermont and Harvard Law School have sued leaders of two state departments and a private health care provider, accusing them of refusing to treat inmates diagnosed with chronic hepatitis C.
The federal lawsuit in Burlington was filed Tuesday on behalf of two prisoners. They allege leaders of the Agency of Human Services and the Department of Corrections, and Centurion of Vermont’s denial of treatment violates the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment and the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Hepatitis C is a viral infection that attacks the liver.
Corrections Commissioner Michael Touchette said he hadn’t been served the lawsuit. He said the department’s worked closely with Vermont Legal Aid and University of Vermont infectious disease specialists to ensure provisions of HCV care are at the prevailing standards.
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