KFF Health News Apr 21 2025 California has halted a court-ordered medical parole program, opting instead to send its most incapacitated prisoners back to state lockups or release them early. The unilateral termination is drawing protests from attorneys representing prisoners and the author of the state's medical parole legislation, who say it unnecessarily puts this vulnerable population at risk. The move is the latest wrinkle in a long-running drive to free those deemed so ill that they are no