John Willoughby
reporter2@greenepublishing.com
In response to a statewide state of emergency and the recent outbreak of COVID-19, The Florida Department of Corrections (FDC) has suspended visitation at all correctional institutions statewide, including Madison Correctional Institution (MCI). The suspension is in effect through Sunday, April 5.
"Every month, FDC is fortunate to have more than 30,000 visitors from across the country enter our correctional institutions to visit their loved ones," said FDC secretary Mark Inch. "During this State of Emergency, it's critical we take all precautions necessary to minimize the potential risk to the inmate population and staff charged with their care and custody. This decision has been made in close consultation with our partners at the Florida Department of Health and with correctional best practices being reviewed nationwide."
While face-to-face physical visitation is prohibited at this time for the well-being of correctional officers, inmates and other staff, other forms of visitation is made easy through FDC's partnership with Securus, a visual communication system allowing connection with an incarcerated individual, and JPay, a secure money transfer system. JPay Stamps will serve as a form of payment for emails, photos and VideoGrams.
During this time of physical visitation suspension, Securus and JPay will offer:
One free video visitation per JPay account linked to a Florida inmate
Two free phone calls (up to 15 minutes) per incarcerated individual each week
Four free JPay stamps for each inmate, each week (stamps credited on Friday mornings)
Also, the cost of outbound VideoGrams, from inmates to friends or family members, will be reduced by 50 percent. Instead of four JPay Stamps, inmates will only pay two JPay Stamps per VideoGram.
"We look forward to resuming normal visitation as soon as possible," said Secretary Inch.
According to FDC, illnesses that spread from person to person can develop quickly in a correctional environment. Anyone entering a correctional institution will be screened, and entrance will be restricted if they:
Have traveled and returned from China, Iran, Italy or South Korea within the last 14 days
Have signs or symptoms of a respiratory infection such as fever, cough, shortness of breath
Have had contact with someone who has or is under investigation for COVID-19
For more information on the steps FDC is taking to prepare for COVID-19, visit www.dc.state.fl.us/comm/index.html.