My name is James M. Green, and I'm going to speak from my own personal experience with being confronted with a terminal medical emergency while  being a convict in Maryland's Prison system, whose medical provider, Correctional Medical Services, Inc./Corizon, Inc.,  forced me to suffer for nearly two weeks a debilitating and extremely dangerous illness .

My incident started back in Sept. of 2011 while I was an athletic 41yr. old black man working in the prison's metal shop as a welder. During work I inadvertently inhaled metal dust and subsequently developed a violent cough, couldn't breath, constant vomiting, experienced weakness and dizziness. I then submitted a sick-call slip on the 9th of Sept.,2011 and was seen on the 14th by the medical staff. They diagnosed me after a brief examination with bronchitis and gave me some medication to help my cough, and then told me that "if my symptoms get any worse that I should contact them immediately." Later that night I woke up coughing violently still, but this time there was large clumps of blood being ejected. I immediately notified the ranking prison official about my emergency and he promptly called the medical dept. who told him that I was scheduled to see the Physicians Assistant the" next day". The "next day" came and went without me seeing anyone about the large clumps of blood that I was coughing and vomiting up frequently, the extreme weakness and weight loss due to a total loss of appetite. The ranking prison official kept calling the medical department requesting immediate medical attention, and each time he was told that I was scheduled to see someone. This happened up until Sept. 23rd,2011 when he had me rushed by other prisoners on a stretcher to the medical department. I was seen by a nurse who ignored the fact that, infront of her, I ejected a large clump of blood into a napkin for to scrutinize. Instead she dismissed me and sent me back to my tier also ignoring my request to see a doctor.

The ranking officer continued to request immediate medical assistance as he was aware of my rapid health deterioration until the point where he felt the need to rush me back up to the medical dept.. So on Sept. 26th, 2011 he rushed me up there and this time the physicians assistant seen me on the stretcher coughing violently, and she then immediately notified the doctor on duty. I was then sent to get a chest x-ray where it was discovered that I had an enlarged heat and blood clots in my lungs. I was then sent to the neighboring hospital to be examined, and they ran tests and they determined that I had an aggressive form of Pneumonia and Pulmonary Embolisms (blood clots). I was then sent to another Hospital for treatment, where later I was diagnosed as having developed a severe Cardio-Myopathy (Congested Heart Failure), and then I was placed on a multiple medicine regimen. Eventhough those facts of how it started was explained the Cardiologist said that my heart damage most likely came from Hypertension (Endo Myocardio Fibrosis, a degenerative heart disease), which is endemic of black males in their 40's.   

Let's fast forward to Dec. of 2012, after getting really ill again and going to see the Cardiologist at the hospital, it was discovered that I had blood clots in both ventricles of my heart. I was given a higher dose of blood thinners and sent back to the prison. Then on Apr. 8th,2013  I went into Cardiac Arrest. I was revived after 90 minutes, and 3 days later a PaceMaker/Defibrillator was implanted. I had to reteach myself how to walk, I now suffer from intense migraine headaches, muscle spasms, short-term memory loss, sensitivity to light, constant dizziness and shortness of breath.

The issue is I attempted to civilly sue the Prison's Medical Provider, Corizon,Inc., for their culpability in their "Neglect and Deliberate Indifference" for neglecting my emergent mediacl issue despite being called repeatedly by a ranking Correctional Officer requesting me to be seen, but the process has been tedious due to the fact that laws are constructed to disable a prisoners ability to effectively sue while behind bars. A law that alienates Civil Attorneys who seek to represent a prisoner's interests. Coupled with the fact that a prisoners' "State imposed" limitation on mobility and access to important resources to effectively fight when there's a "Statute of Limitations".

*Prisoners who attempts to civilly sue due to medical/civil right issues shouldn't be relegated to the same restrictions that are imposed on those who aren't restricted by incarceration.

*Attorneys shouldn't be penalized for assisting Prisoners who seek to sue in the cause of Civil Rights Violations and Medical Neglect/Malpractice/Deliberate Indifference as stipulated in the Prisoners Reform Litigation Act.

*If its' found out after the "Statute of Limitations" that the "causation of the injury" was misdiagnosed during the incarceration, the claimant (prisoner) should be allowed, due to mitigating evidence, to refile the civil suit and proceed with a re-established Statute of Limitations.

The incident with me happened close to 5 yrs.ago. 4 of which I was behind prison walls, but I still suffer from a severely damaged heart, migraines and body spasms, periodic loss of breath which is probably due to the Cardiac Arrest and the time(90 min.) my brain went without oxygen. (note:I was getting prepared for the morgue when I woke up). I just found out that my heart didn't get damaged due to Hypertension, as they suggested, but was due the complications from allowing pneumonia (staph-strep bacteria) and pulmonary embolisms (blood clots) to go untreated for close to 2 weeks (EndoCarditis, which is viral and caused by bacteria). Because if it was what Corizon, Inc. said  then my heart would be deteriorating and not strengthening. My Echocardiogram I took last friday morning showed that my heart is regenerating by nearing normal in strength. That's God! and I refuse to let them get away with almost killing me! We need to force accountability!! And show that despite being in prison or jails that we do deserve to be treated HUMAN!