# Management of Inmates With Disabilities

PS 5200.06 (11/22/2019) · [Official PDF on bop.gov →](https://www.bop.gov/policy/progstat/5200_06.pdf)

The disability policy. If a loved one going in has a mobility, hearing, vision, learning, or cognitive disability, accommodations are a right with a process behind them, not a favor staff can grant or withhold. This covers what counts as a disability (broader than most people assume), how accommodations get requested (in writing, always), the protections around assistive devices, and the escalation path when the answer is no, which runs through [the grievance system](/resources/program-statements/1330-18-administrative-remedy-program) and beyond.

SECTION 1: PURPOSE AND SCOPE (EXCERPT)

To ensure the Bureau of Prisons (Bureau) properly identifies, tracks, and provides services to inmates with disabilities.

a. Program Objectives. Expected results of this program are:

■ Institutions ensure inmates with disabilities have appropriate access to programs, services and accommodations. ■ Reentry planning includes referral to accommodation services and accessible housing. ■ Sufficient resources will be allocated to deliver appropriate services to inmates with disabilities. ■ Staff will be provided training in order to work with inmates with disabilities.

> This is the disability-accommodation policy. If someone going in has a disability, physical, sensory, cognitive, learning, the prison is required to identify it, track it, and provide reasonable accommodations so they can access programs and housing. Families of someone with a disability should know this framework exists and that accommodations are a right, not a favor.

b. Summary of Changes

Policy Rescinded

P5200.05 Management of Inmates With Disabilities (10/27/17)

The following changes have been incorporated into the policy:

The requirements of section 301 of the First Step Act, codified at 18 § USC 3582 for dyslexia screening.

b. Institution Supplement. None required. Should local facilities make any changes outside changes required in national policy or establish any additional local procedures to implement national policy, the local Union may invoke to negotiate procedures or appropriate arrangements.

SECTION 2: DEFINITIONS (EXCERPT)

Accommodation: A change or adjustment to practice, program, or facility that allows an inmate with disabilities to have appropriate access.

Activities of Daily Living (ADLs) and Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADLs): An inmate’s abilities to perform actions that involve the management of basic bodily functions (ADL) or activities that permit independent living (IADL). For example, an inmate with an impairment to an ADL may have difficulty eating; an inmate with an impairment to an IADL may be able to physically eat, but could not plan the meal or follow the recipe.

Assistive Technology: Adaptive or rehabilitative devices used by inmates with disabilities. Examples include hearing aids, communication devices, wheelchairs, walkers and text magnifiers.

> In plain terms: an 'accommodation' is any adjustment that lets a person with a disability participate, and 'assistive technology' covers the actual devices, hearing aids, wheelchairs, walkers, communication devices. Disability here is broad: visual, hearing, speech, mobility, intellectual, and learning disabilities all count. So this isn't just wheelchairs; it includes things like dyslexia and other learning disorders.

Disability: An impairment that substantially limits an individual from performing major life activities. Disabilities may be physical and/or cognitive, and many individuals have more than one disability or a single disability that impacts more than one life activity. Types of disabilities include but are not limited to visual, hearing, speech, mobility, educational, intellectual, and cognitive. Refer to Appendix A for Health Services Physical/Sensory guidance.

Prosthesis: An artificial limb or body part.

SECTION 10: ACCOMMODATIONS AND PROGRAM ACCESS (EXCERPT)

Staff members may provide accommodations to inmates with obvious disabilities without a formal inmate request (e.g., missing limb, documented history of hearing loss or blindness, etc.). Inmates also may request an accommodation or a modification to accommodations already provided by making an Inmate Request to Staff (BP-A0148). As described below, the institution will evaluate the request and make a final determination on the accommodation to be provided.

> Two ways accommodations happen: staff should provide them automatically for obvious disabilities, and for anything else the inmate asks by filing a simple Inmate Request to Staff (the 'cop-out,' form BP-A0148). If someone inside needs an accommodation and isn't getting it, the concrete first step is filing that request in writing. Don't wait and hope; put it on paper.

Inmates with disabilities are not denied access to programs and services solely based on the presence or suspected presence of a disability. When a disability creates barriers for an inmate’s program participation, Bureau staff will modify the program to the extent possible to accommodate the individual while maintaining program integrity, or provide an appropriate accommodation to the inmate unless an undue burden exists.

> You can't be shut out of a program just because you have a disability. If the disability makes a program hard to access, staff are supposed to modify it or provide an accommodation, unless doing so is a genuine 'undue burden.' This matters for programs tied to release, like RDAP or education, that affect time and reentry. Being disabled shouldn't cost someone access to programming that shortens their sentence.

Accommodation needs vary from person to person, and therefore must be individualized. If an accommodation is needed, it will be provided by the department that verified the disability. When a determination is made that an inmate’s needs go outside the scope of the department, different professions must work collaboratively to meet the needs of the inmate. For particularly complex cases, accommodations are determined by a team (known as a local disabilities committee), comprised of a Psychologist, medical provider, an educator, Recreation Specialist, Unit Manager, Reentry Affairs Coordinator, and Captain. This team is led by the Associate Warden, Programs, whose responsibility is to serve as the local coordinator on disabilities. Legal staff are consulted as needed. A Social Worker is part of the team if the position is filled.

The accommodation provided does not have to be the accommodation requested by the inmate. Multiple options can be considered. Appropriate accommodations should promote improvement to ADLs and IADLs to the extent possible. Wardens should request assistance from the Regional Disabilities Coordinator if needed in evaluating accommodation requests. The Regional Disabilities Coordinator will consult with the Office of General Counsel and the Women and Special Populations Branch as needed.

In deciding whether to grant an accommodation, institutions may consider whether the program or activity would be fundamentally altered, or whether it would result in undue financial or administrative burden. Before denying a request for accommodation on this basis, the appropriate legal office should be consulted.

> Two things to set expectations. First, you get an effective accommodation, not necessarily the exact one you asked for, they can offer an alternative that works. Second, they can deny a request only if it would fundamentally change the program or be a real burden, and they're supposed to consult legal before denying on that basis. So 'no' is allowed, but it's supposed to be a considered, documented decision, not a brush-off.

Accommodations may include, but are not limited to, accessibility of all relevant areas of the compound, assistive devices or technologies, specialized approaches to learning, interpreters, additional time to complete tasks, modified materials (e.g. large print), enhanced reentry planning, and inmate companions. Information about accommodations authorized for a particular inmate is documented by the department approving them, and a notification is sent to the Unit Team.

> Concrete examples of what accommodations can look like: interpreters, large-print materials, extra time on tasks, accessible routes around the compound, learning supports for disabilities like dyslexia, and even 'inmate companions,' peers assigned to help. If you're advocating for a loved one, this list is useful ammunition; these are all things the policy explicitly contemplates.

Education staff with knowledge of learning disabilities will determine the appropriate use of audio technology for program course materials with an understanding of dyslexia.

Some inmates with physical or mobility impairments may require the use of assistive technologies (e.g., hearing aids, wheelchairs, prostheses). Under certain circumstances, inmates may not need to use these devices all of the time. Therefore, staff are reminded that failure to use these devices by the inmate is not a disciplinary infraction or an indicator the device is not needed. The Clinical Director or appropriate medical provider should be consulted prior to removing a device from an inmate’s possession, unless exigent circumstances exist. If the device is to be removed, an alternative accommodation should be provided if appropriate.

> Important protection: not using an assistive device all the time is not a rule violation, and staff aren't supposed to take a device (wheelchair, hearing aid, prosthesis) without a medical provider signing off first. Sometimes people don't need a device every minute, and that can't be twisted into 'you don't really need it.' If a device is being threatened or removed, medical has to be involved.

Peer support, such as inmate companions, are considered at institutions housing inmates with disabilities.

SECTION 13: REENTRY NEEDS (EXCERPT)

The Residential Reentry Management Branch must be notified in the referral packet of any releasing inmate with a SENTRY CMA disabilities assignment. With the exception of immediate releases, Unit Team notifies the Social Worker or Reentry Affairs Coordinator when they are working on release plans for inmates with disabilities releasing directly to the community.

Institution Social Workers and Reentry Affairs Coordinators locate resources, specialized services, and direct placements in the community serving individuals with disabilities, and should be consulted. Reentry Affairs Coordinators collaborate with the department identifying the disability and assist in locating appropriate volunteers or mentors for this population.

> Reentry gets extra attention for people with disabilities. Before release, the social worker and reentry coordinator are supposed to line up community resources, accessible placements, and specialized services. So the accommodation obligation doesn't just end at the gate; it's supposed to feed into a workable release plan. If someone with a disability is nearing release, the reentry coordinator is the person to engage early.

The Women and Special Populations Branch can also be contacted to provide guidance and resources for reentry needs of inmates with disabilities.

SECTION 14: ADMINISTRATIVE REMEDIES (EXCERPT)

Inmates may use the procedures of the Program Statement Administrative Remedy Program concerning any issues relating to this policy. After receiving a response to a BP-11, inmates alleging violations of the Rehabilitation Act must also use additional procedures required by the Department of Justice (DOJ) in order to exhaust available administrative remedies on these issues. The DOJ procedures are found at 28 C.F.R. § 39.170.

> If accommodations are denied or ignored, there's a path to fight it. First run the normal grievance ladder (BP-9, BP-10, BP-11). Then, for a claimed violation of the Rehabilitation Act (the federal disability law), there's an extra step: a complaint to the Bureau's EEO Office at Central Office, attaching your grievance paperwork. This is how you 'exhaust remedies' on a disability claim, which can matter if it ever goes further. Not legal advice, but if a disability-rights issue is serious, this paper trail is the foundation, and a lawyer who does prisoner or disability rights work would want to see it.

The Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Officer, Central Office, has been designated by DOJ and Bureau as the “Responsible Official” or “Official” as used in these regulations.

Inmates should file complaints with the EEO Officer, Central Office. All complaints should be sent to the Bureau’s EEO Office, and include copies of the administrative remedies and responses received. (i.e., BP-9, BP-10, and BP-11).

Any costs incurred from the administrative process will be paid from the budget of the institution where the claim arose.

Source: PS 5200.06 (11/22/2019), [bop.gov/policy/progstat/5200\_06.pdf](https://www.bop.gov/policy/progstat/5200_06.pdf). U.S. government work, public domain. Excerpts only; the official PDF controls.

**Need help with this? Just ask.**

These pages cover the general rules. Your situation has details they don't. Email me a question. **Answers are free** , and "you don't need to pay anyone for this" is my most common answer.

[josh@federalprisondude.com](mailto:josh@federalprisondude.com)

I answer in the order received, usually within a couple of days. I have a day job. If your situation genuinely needs more than an email, I take a limited number of consults, so say so and we'll work it out.