Linkage to hepatitis C care after incarceration in jail: a prospective, single arm clinical trial

As many as half a million people in correctional settings in the United States may be hepatitis C virus (HCV) antibody-positive [1]. Due in part to the criminalization of individuals with substance use disorders known to increase HCV risk, HCV prevalence in correctional settings is in the order of 10–20 times that of the general population [2]. It is estimated that one in three people living with HCV (PLWHCV) pass through the criminal justice system each year [3]. Failure to effectively intervene for PLWHCV in HCV care within the criminal justice system may place PLWHCV at ongoing risk for progression of HCV-related liver disease (cirrhosis, end-stage liver disease, and hepatocellular carcinoma) and may facilitate ongoing transmission of HCV in the neighborhoods of greatest socio-economic disparities to which PLWHCV return after incarceration [4‐6].

The criminal justice system, being a high prevalence setting, is an important locus for HCV treatment with the goal of HCV elimination [7]. For optimal operationalization of a response to HCV in this setting it is important to differentiate jails from prisons. People incarcerated in local jails are largely detained pre-trial and/or have short sentences of generally up to one year or less. People incarcerated in prisons are convicted of a crime and typically sentenced to incarceration for more than one year. While longer sentences more readily permit HCV treatment in prisons, treatment is complicated in jails where the median length of stay is 15 days [8]. HCV regimens have been reduced to twelve weeks or less for the majority of individuals with direct acting antiviral (DAA) therapy making treatment feasible for some jail detainees [9]. However, there are twelve million admissions to US jails per year, which is nineteen times the number in state and federal prisons [10]. With the high volume of likely untreated detainees cycling through, U.S. jails are a critical site for linkage to HCV care after incarceration.

Linkage to community care from correctional settings is complicated by competing priorities after incarceration. During incarceration, individuals experience social, structural, and medical disruptions that complicate the reentry period. To date, the majority of work on linkage to care from correctional settings has focused on people living with HIV (PLWHIV). Lack of access to health insurance, lack of social support, exacerbation of mental health conditions, and unstable housing have all been documented as complicating linkage to care among PLWHIV [11‐14].

A variety of strategies have been evaluated for their impact on linkage to care among PLWHIV leaving jail and prison. Case management, which aims to coordinate medical, mental health, social, and other services has been the most extensively studied. Evidence suggests that case management plays a key role in facilitating linkage to HIV care. In one randomized controlled trial (RCT), case management was shown to be more effective than referral alone [15]. Case management has also been associated with improved adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART), HIV viral load suppression, retention in care, fewer emergency department visits, and less housing instability and food insecurity among PLWHIV [16, 17]. Transitional care coordination (TCC) is a form of case management that includes an intake assessment, discharge and transitional care plans, and appointment scheduling. TCC is now a nationally recognized evidence-informed intervention that plays a key role in facilitating linkage to HIV care after incarceration [18]. Patient navigation is another strategy that may provide additional benefit. While patient navigation does not have a standard definition, programs incorporating this strategy tend to focus on advocacy, health education, and social support [19]. In a recently published RCT study, patient navigation coupled with case management resulted in greater linkage to and retention in HIV care after incarceration in jail than standard case management alone [20].

Strategies for linkage to HIV care may be applicable to other clinical and therapeutic areas including HCV. To date, models of care and their impact on linkage to HCV care after incarceration are poorly understood. There are also few data on predictors of linkage to HCV care after incarceration. We conducted a prospective, single arm clinical trial of a combined TCC and patient navigation intervention among HCV mono-infected individuals leaving the New York City jail system. The aim of this study was to measure linkage to and retention in care associated with this combined TCC and patient navigation model on the rate of linkage to and retention in HCV care. We also aimed to identify factors associated with linkage to HCV care and evaluate feasibility of operationalizing this care coordination strategy among justice-involved PLWHCV.

To our knowledge, this is the first prospective trial to characterize the HCV care cascade in the transition from a correctional setting to the community. It is also the first cohort study to describe factors associated with linkage to HCV care after incarceration. These data provide preliminary evidence that a combined TCC and patient navigation strategy may be effective in achieving timely linkage to HCV care for a subset of PLWHCV after incarceration in jail.

Linkage rates in our study are similar to those reported in other corrections-based public health programs and pilot studies from other jurisdictions. In a Rhode Island-based rapid HCV testing pilot study in which participants received a questionnaire, informational video, and a referral, 4/15 (27%) participants with confirmed viremia linked to HCV care [25]. In a Massachusetts program in which participants with HCV received referrals to HCV care, 14/82 (17%) and 31/82 (38%) had laboratory evidence of linkage to HCV care within 6 and 12 months, respectively [26]. In an HCV testing and linkage to care program in South and North Carolina, participants received HCV post-test counseling, a referral, appointment scheduling, and patient navigation (in North Carolina only). In South and North Carolina, respectively, 2/7 (29%) and 10/18 (56%) participants who were referred attended their first HCV appointment [27].

All of these studies suggest there are substantial challenges associated with linkage to HCV care. Moreover, data from South Carolina, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island demonstrate these barriers are not overcome with education, referral, and appointment scheduling alone. While data from North Carolina suggest better linkage rates may be achievable with patient navigation, the small sample size limits the generalizability of the results and, still, only roughly half of participants linked to HCV care. Our intervention was modeled on the evidence-informed TCC intervention used in NYC jails to facilitate linkage to HIV care after incarceration. For PLWHIV, linkage rates associated with this program approach 75% [18]. Yet, the linkage rate was substantially lower among monoinfected PLWHCV in our study.

Several factors may account for the higher linkage rate among PLWHIV than PLWHCV. First, in our study we used telephone-based patient navigation with appointment accompaniment if requested as the community portion of the intervention. The TCC intervention for PLWHIV after incarceration in the NYC jails includes an extensive network of community resources, linkage agreements with community providers, dedicated community case managers funded through Ryan White Part A, and housing assistance [28]. We were not able to provide such extensive services due to resource limitations and believe such services could have improved linkage rates [18].

We hypothesize there are several other key differences leading to higher linkage rates among PLWHIV than PLWHCV. First, due to the earlier response of health care systems to the HIV epidemic at the federal, state, and local levels and relatively longstanding availability of effective ART, many PLWHIV are more informed about their HIV diagnoses and the effectiveness of ART. As an example, Loeliger et al. demonstrated that an HIV diagnosis of greater than one year predicted retention in HIV care among justice-involved PLWHIV [17]. PLWHCV may be relatively unaware of the short- and long-term consequence of HCV infection and the effectiveness of DAA therapy. With increased collective HCV- and DAA-related knowledge, linkage rates may marginally improve over time.

Additionally, relationships with medical providers prior to incarceration have been shown to result in higher linkage rates among PLWHIV [16, 29, 30]. Our study mirrors this finding given a preference to be linked to one’s existing health system was associated with linkage to HCV care. Among PLWHIV who reported no prior history of HIV medical services, Molitor et al. identified a linkage rate of 29% [31]. Very few of our study participants reported an existing relationship with an HCV provider prior to incarceration, and our linkage rate was similar. Taken together, these findings suggest increased familiarity with the healthcare system may facilitate linkage to care.

Active substance use disorders also likely contribute to lower linkage rates among PLWHCV. Injection drug use is the number one risk factor for HCV in the U.S., and nearly two-thirds of our study participants reported injection drug use thirty days prior to incarceration. Substance use disorders are known to complicate linkage among PLWHIV [32]. In our study, injection drug use was not associated with linkage to HCV care; however, taking methadone prior to incarceration was. Opioid agonist therapy is an evidence-based strategy leading to more stability from active drug use and higher linkage to care among PLWHIV [20]. While we do not have follow-up data on continuation of methadone, we presume many of these participants continued on methadone as those who were on methadone prior to incarceration at the time of this study were generally maintained in the NYC jails unless they were expected to be transferred to prison based on available legal criteria. Given that the period after incarceration is associated with a high risk for active drug use and theoretical risk for HCV transmission [33‐36], rapid linkages to HCV and substance use disorder treatment are a high priority. The importance of linkage interventions among people who inject drugs is further underscored by risk of overdose after incarceration [37].

Reporting a history of drinking alcohol to intoxication prior to incarceration was negatively associated with linkage to HCV care. Data are limited on the impact of alcohol use on linkage to care following incarceration. However, alcohol has been shown to be negatively associated with DAA adherence among people who inject drugs [38]. Drinking alcohol to intoxication in the 30 days prior to incarceration was not associated with linkage to care; however, it did show a similar trend. Therefore, screening and treatment of alcohol use disorders should also be considered an integral component of HCV linkage to care programs.

Feeling family or a loved one were concerned about the participants’ wellbeing was also associated with linkage to HCV care in our study. The role of social support in promoting linkage to care after incarceration among PLWHCV is not known; however, there is evidence among PLWHIV that a lack of social support is a barrier. The use of patient or peer navigators with racial/ethnic concordance or shared life experience have been proposed as an important strategy [31, 39, 40]. This may be even more important for those who lack support from family or a loved one. In our study, a navigator with a master’s level of education performed patient navigation that was mostly telephonic. It is possible peer navigation with active outreach might have resulted in a higher linkage rate.

We did not identify a statistically significant relationship between reincarceration and linkage to HCV care. Reincarceration has been demonstrated to be a complicating factor in linkage to and retention in HIV care. However, since incarcerated persons have access to stable medical services, it can also be leveraged to improve HIV-related outcomes [17, 41, 42]. In our study, reincarceration was more common in the 180 days after index incarceration than linkage to HCV care and was an equally common initial event to linkage to HCV care. If individuals are reincarcerated, communication can be interrupted and HCV linkage appointments may be missed. Conversely, reincarceration may be an opportunity to reengage individuals with HCV who have not yet linked to care, as was the case for three participants in this study. For those who initiate HCV treatment in the community and are at risk of ongoing justice-involvement, education should be provided to make jail healthcare staff aware to avoid HCV treatment interruption.

This study has limitations. First, as a single arm trial, we are unable to determine if the observed linkage rate was directly attributable to the intervention. Moreover, the moderate sample size could lead to decreased statistical power to detect associations. However, we believe our study provides important preliminary data on the rate and factors associated with linkage to HCV care after incarceration in jail following the implementation of a combined case management and patient navigation strategy. Second, the study took place in one large urban area, and community partners were able to schedule HCV appointments within 2–4 weeks after incarceration, which may limit generalizability. Third, our sample may not have been representative of PLWHCV in the jail population as a whole since the median duration of time between enrollment and community return was 34 days, and detainees with the shortest lengths of stay were not able to be recruited. Fourth, demographics and covariates like mental illness were obtained through self-report, which may under- or overestimate true rates. Lastly, follow-up for linkage to HCV care was conducted over 180 days after the index incarceration and participants who were lost to follow-up could have linked to non study-affiliated clinics so our linkage and retention outcomes may be underestimated.

In conclusion, our study provides important real-world data on the rate and factors associated with linkage to HCV care after incarceration jail. Due to the modest linkage rates observed, future interventions should consider strengthening transitional care planning and community patient navigation among justice-involved PLWHCV. We believe that multicomponent intervention incorporating education, increased resources for TCC and community-based patient navigation, treatment of substance use disorders – specifically concomitant linkage to opioid agonist therapy, and increasing social support are needed.