Lawsuit Filed Challenging Dangerously Inadequate Treatment of Pennsylvania Prisoners with Diabetes

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

March 19, 2026

 

Lawsuit Filed Challenging Dangerously Inadequate Treatment of Pennsylvania Prisoners with Diabetes

 

Disability Rights Pennsylvania
301 Chestnut Street, Suite 300
Harrisburg, PA 17101
media@disabilityrightspa.org

 

Steve and Barbara O’Connor wrote to the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections (DOC) last year to “express concern over the ongoing, inadequate medical care” being provided to their daughter, who has type 1 diabetes. They described multiple incidents where she experienced “severe low blood sugar conditions that required emergency intervention.” They wrote that they “are fearful that her condition will remain poorly treated and further, dire complications will result.” They asked that the DOC provide diabetes care consistent with the established standard of care, noting that the DOC’s “current approach is clearly not working.”

No treatment improvements were made, and this young woman – who managed her diabetes well prior to incarceration – remains at grave risk of serious medical complications. There are hundreds of people in Pennsylvania’s DOC who face the same risk due to inadequate medical care, in violation of their rights under the Eighth Amendment of the United States Constitution.

Today, Disability Rights Pennsylvania (DRP) and the Law Office of Aaron J. Fischer filed a federal lawsuit challenging the cruel and dangerous treatment of prisoners in the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections (DOC) with type 1 diabetes. The DOC systematically puts the health and lives of hundreds of prisoners with diabetes at risk by ignoring their medical needs and discriminating against them.

The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, describes in detail how the Pennsylvania DOC denies prisoners in its custody basic medical treatment that is the standard of care for people with diabetes, placing them at significant and immediate risks, including seizures, coma, and sudden death, and longer-term risks of blindness, amputations, kidney failure, and premature death. The DOC has a blanket policy of refusing to evaluate prisoners with diabetes for the use of modern technologies, including insulin pumps and continuous glucose monitors, that are essential components of the standard of care for diabetes. The lawsuit seeks relief that would require the Pennsylvania DOC to follow the standard of care, consistent with the American Diabetes Association’s Diabetes Management in Detention Facilities: A Statement of the American Diabetes Association. 

The lawsuit includes numerous examples of the serious and unnecessary dangers faced by Pennsylvania prisoners with type 1 diabetes as a result of the deficient care they receive, including the following:

• A prisoner at SCI Waymart has repeatedly been hospitalized for diabetic ketoacidosis, a life-threatening condition caused by uncontrolled blood sugar, each time after the DOC failed to give him necessary insulin doses.
• A prisoner at SCI Muncy has suffered many complications from her inadequately treated diabetes, including retinal (eye) disease, chronic kidney disease, foot drop, nerve damage, stomach paralysis, and high cholesterol. Despite all of these problems, the DOC refuses to provide her with the treatment she needs to manage her diabetes.  The DOC also refuses to allow her to keep basic glucose supplies in her cell to treat low blood sugar, which has led to her repeatedly losing consciousness.

• A prisoner at SCI Rockview is prescribed antiquated insulins that are ineffective at managing his blood sugar levels, resulting in repeated incidents of severe high and low blood sugars.

• A prisoner at SCI Cambridge Springs has had severe and dangerous low blood sugars that have caused her to lose consciousness, requiring emergency medical care. She requested to use a continuous glucose monitor and insulin pump to address the issue, but DOC denied her for no reason other than that the system prohibits such devices.

“There is absolutely no legal justification for the DOC’s use of outdated insulin, dangerous denials of medication, and its refusal to provide the readily-available technology that prisoners with diabetes need to effectively manage their diabetes and avoid developing debilitating medical complications from it,” said Alexandra Hermann, an attorney at Disability Rights Pennsylvania (DRP), which is the federally-designated protection and advocacy agency for people with disabilities in Pennsylvania and the plaintiff in the lawsuit.

The lawsuit also seeks to end unlawful disability discrimination against people with diabetes, which is a recognized disability under federal law. For example, the DOC rejects prisoners with diabetes who wish to participate in DOC vocational training programs, solely on the basis of their having diabetes, which is a violation of disability law.

“When a person is in incarcerated, they are denied their liberty, but the United States Constitution is clear they cannot be denied necessary medical treatment,” said Aaron Fischer, DRP’s co-counsel on the case. “DOC’s failure to provide adequate diabetes care means that hundreds of people are facing serious and irreparable harm to their health, every single day. Other prison systems have taken steps to meet today’s standard of care for treating diabetes. It is high time for Pennsylvania to catch up.”

The lawsuit can be found here.

 

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Disability Rights Pennsylvania (DRP) is the organization designated by the Commonwealth under federal law to protect the rights of and advocate for Pennsylvanians with disabilities. DRP works to ensure that individuals with disabilities can live the lives they choose, free from abuse, neglect, discrimination, and segregation.

For more information, visit https://www.disabilityrightspa.org.

The Law Office of Aaron J. Fischer represents clients on issues related to civil rights, disability rights, and complex litigation, with experience monitoring public and private entities to ensure legal compliance. The firm is founded upon a commitment to justice and to practical problem-solving.

For more information, visit https://www.aaronfischerlaw.com.