Virtual healthcare provider HealthTap is collaborating with correctional healthcare company NaphCare to provide virtual primary care and urgent care to individuals in halfway houses and transition centers. 

Through the collaboration, incarcerated people from federal prisons contracted with NaphCare living in halfway houses and transition centers will be able to receive care from HealthTap's care providers. 

The patient’s case manager schedules and coordinates visits, and also helps navigate follow-up care.

The nationwide rollout comes in the wake of similar partnerships with correctional systems in Texas, Colorado, Arizona and Florida. 

"Healthcare access should not end at the prison gates; it should be a bridge to a better future," HealthTap founder and CEO Sean Mehra told MobiHealthNews.

"Formerly incarcerated individuals often face immense barriers to care, which can lead to worsening health conditions and higher rates of recidivism," Mehra said. "By partnering with NaphCare, we’re ensuring that this vulnerable population has the same opportunity as anyone else to establish a trusted relationship with a primary care doctor and get the ongoing care they need to rebuild their lives."

THE LARGER TREND

Other companies offering products and services to correctional facilities and youth programs include Fusion, which last year announced the implementation of its EHR system for the Ohio Department of Youth Services.

According to the company, the EHR, which went live on June 24, gives DYS staff a comprehensive platform for managing patient records, coordinating care and improving overall efficiency. 

In 2023, Bicycle Health announced it partnered with the Federal Bureau of Prisons to give individuals released from prison continued access to monthly injections of buprenorphine for opioid use disorder. 

Bicycle offers virtual treatment for opioid use disorder, including medication-assisted treatment like Suboxone.