In incarceration, prisoners must rely on facility officials to approve and provide medical care for injuries, illnesses, and chronic health conditions. However, delayed medical care may give a prisoner the right to pursue a claim for harm and loss caused by an untreated or worsened injury or illness. But when does delayed prison medical care give rise to a legal claim? A prisoner may have a claim if prison officials demonstrated a deliberate indifference to the prisoner’s serious medical needs.
The Deliberate Indifference Standard
Under the Eighth Amendment, correctional and detention facility officials must provide prisoners or detainees with adequate medical care. Failing to provide adequate medical care constitutes “deliberate indifference to serious medical need.” Under the deliberate indifference standard for an Eighth Amendment delayed care claim, a prisoner must show they:
- Had a serious medical or mental health need requiring treatment from a healthcare or mental health professional
- Facility officials knew of the prisoner’s serious need and consciously disregarded their obligation to provide care
Deliberate indifference involves a higher degree of culpability from prison officials than ordinary medical malpractice. Delayed prison medical care arising from officials’ negligence cannot support an Eighth Amendment claim. Furthermore, mere disagreement with prison medical officials’ chosen course of treatment cannot support a delayed prison claim if the chosen treatment falls within the applicable standard of care. Instead, officials must knowingly disregard a prisoner’s need for medical or mental health care.
When a Delay Crosses the Line
A delay in medical care can become a legal claim against prison officials when it causes a prisoner to suffer harm they would not have experienced with timely care. For a delay to result in harm, a prisoner must experience aggravation of a medical condition or the loss of treatment opportunities.
Delayed medical care can cross the line into deliberate indifference where prison officials repeatedly ignore a prisoner’s requests for medical attention without reasonable justification or when officials delay treatment purely for cost reasons or as part of a blanket policy.
Pretrial Detention vs. Criminal Incarceration
Individuals serving criminal sentences in the custody of the Oregon Department of Corrections may have an Eighth Amendment claim if they suffer harm from a delay in medical care. Conversely, individuals held in pretrial detention have rights under the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause, which prohibits detention facility officials from inflicting punishment before a detainee’s conviction. Because pretrial detention cannot impose conditions intended as punishment, courts may view delays in medical care under a more detainee-favorable objective reasonableness standard.
Deadlines and Other Procedural Considerations
Prisoners who wish to file federal lawsuits to remedy violations of their Eighth Amendment right due to delayed prison medical or mental health care must follow the procedural rules of the Prison Litigation Reform Act. The law requires prisoners to exhaust their facility’s internal grievance procedures before filing a federal lawsuit. Federal lawsuits under Section 1983 for delayed prison care also borrow Oregon’s two-year statute of limitations for injury claims. However, medical malpractice claims against state or local agencies and officials may have to comply with the notice requirements of the Oregon Tort Claims Act.
Contact Our Firm Today for Help Protecting Your Rights
If you’ve suffered harm or complications due to delays in medical care while in prison in Oregon, you may have the right to seek financial recovery and accountability from prison officials. Contact Wayne A. Lamb Law today for an initial consultation with a prisoners’ rights attorney to discuss your legal options and learn more about how we can help you pursue a claim to obtain the compensation you deserve.