inmates; medical institution; release
SB 1295 creates a process for releasing Arizona inmates who are elderly or disabled to medical facilities. It requires inmates to first pass a preliminary eligibility check (based on age, disability, citizenship, and residency), then receive approval from Arizona's long-term care system. The bill mandates that victims of the inmate's crime be notified of the release and provides a mechanism for returning inmates to prison if they lose long-term care eligibility. This directly affects inmates qualifying for Arizona's long-term care system, which includes assisted living facilities or healthcare institutions contracted with the state.
Bill status
introduced
1 of 4 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2026
Committee Review
Floor Vote
Governor
Introduced Jan 26, 2026
Last action Mar 10, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison
What changed between versions
Introduced Version
→
Senate Engrossed Version
·
3 edits
MINOR
The bill was reformatted from an introduced version to a Senate engrossed version, with substantive changes to eligibility criteria and definitions. The most significant policy change is the replacement of the disability definition with a new 'debilitating illness' definition that includes terminal illnesses, serious illnesses affecting daily living, life-threatening conditions, and age-related cognitive or physical decline. Additionally, the bill's formatting was standardized with proper capitalization and section numbering.
Scope change
The bill's scope remains focused on releasing inmates to medical institutions, but the eligibility criteria were expanded to include broader health conditions beyond just disability.
ELIGIBILITY
The definition of 'disability' was replaced with 'debilitating illness' which now includes terminal illness, serious illness affecting daily living, life-threatening illness, and age-related functional or cognitive impairment.
DEFINITION
The term 'disability' was removed from the baseline eligibility requirements and replaced with 'debilitating illness' in the definitions section.
TECHNICAL
Text formatting was standardized with proper capitalization, consistent section numbering, and removal of page markers and legislative metadata.
Floor votes
How they voted
No floor votes recorded yet.
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
4
Key actions
2
Committee
0
Amendments
2
Mar 10, 2026
Upper · Passed
DPA
upper
Feb 18, 2026
Upper · Passed
DPA
upper
1 primary · 4 co-sponsors
Sponsors
Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Brian Fernandez
DDemocratic
Co
Hildy Angius
RRepublican
Co
John Kavanagh
RRepublican
Co
Kevin Payne
RRepublican
Co
Tim Dunn
RRepublican
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