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A new study calls attention to the health-care needs of people who are unhoused or formerly incarcerated. A North Dakota lawmaker says the results resonate around the region.

Researchers aligned with the Minnesota Electronic Health Record Consortium looked at data covering more than four million people in that state. They found significant disparities when comparing various health conditions of people recently incarcerated or unhoused to the total statewide population.

In North Dakota, state Representative Karla Rose Hanson, D-Fargo, said similar outcomes are observed by policymakers and providers who want to fix the problem.

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"The number of people who have a substance-use disorder or a mental illness is an issue for our entire population," said Hanson, "but it's especially emphasized in our criminal justice system."

In Minnesota, researchers say people who've recently been in prison also have higher rates of asthma, COPD, and other illnesses.

In North Dakota, Hanson has been part of a working group that looked at improving reentry outcomes. She said she's hopeful about certain law changes, including ensuring people have Medicaid access after leaving prison.

But she said more progress is also needed in housing and job support to create greater overall stability for this population.

Wanda Bertram is the communication strategist with the Prison Policy Initiative, which provided a deep analysis of the Minnesota study. She said the findings put a finer point on what the research community was already aware of, adding that it isn't surprising to see PTSD on the disparities list.

"When you're in prison, there are a lot of different things that can be traumatizing," said Bertram. "Witnessing violence is a major one, so is isolation for people who are in solitary confinement."

Bertram said the new information reinforces her group's recommendation to bolster public health assistance in all states for people trying to re-enter society.

But she said it comes at a tricky time, with the Republican-led Congress passing changes to Medicaid that critics say will result in massive cuts – likely constraining state-level investments.