Sending Missouri Prisoners to Retirement Homes

JEFFERSON CITY - It's no secret that the prisons are crowded and fixing that could take thinking outside the box. Rep. Chris Kelly, D-Columbia, suggested Tuesday during a Public Safety and Corrections Appropriations Committee Meeting taking elderly inmates and putting them in nursing homes. Once they've served out their sentences, they could then qualify for Medicare and Medicaid and reduce costs for the Corrections Department. According to the State Adult Prison Director Tom Clements, Missouri has 202 male and 7 female inmates over the age of 70. Even with those numbers, the state doesn't know how much money it would save by moving inmates to nursing homes.