One of the most effective treatments developed thus far for Hepatitis C is not available to prison populations because of its staggering cost.

The drug, known as Sovaldi, is one of the fastest working drugs on the market, requiring just 12 weeks of treatment with a much higher rate of recovery than other treatments. However, at $1,000 a pill, this 12 week round of medication tallies up an $84,000 bill.

It is estimated that up to 35 percent of inmates in correctional facilities have Hepatitis C. Sovaldi, when used in conjunction with two other drugs, interferon and ribavirin, has been shown to cure as much as 90 percent of the people taking the treatment. This means that the drug has a vast potential to save large sums of money in the long run.

But the high cost of the drug has left prisons without recourse. Tightly restricted budgets mean that there is simply no way for prison officials to make the drugs available to those who need them. The cost of treating the 500,000 inmates in the country who need this one drug would amount to more than $30 billion.

Research into the issue yielded a concession that the costs were high, but researchers argued that the benefits and lifetime savings in health care ultimately made the medication a relatively good value.

This value does little to ease the financial burden on prisons who will often not see any benefit from the overall savings in healthcare the drug garners.

For example, San Francisco’s prison has a annual budget of $2.3 million for inmate health care. If that entire budget was used to buy Sovaldi, only 12 of the 108 prisoners who need it would be able to get it. The rest of the population for that prison would be without healthcare funds for the year. When those 12 inmates finish their sentences, they leave and the impact of future savings leaves with them.

Statistically, Hepatitis C disproportionately affects people living below the poverty line. This is one reason why its hefty price has been met with staunch opposition. Gilead Sciences, the company that makes the drugs, is said to be negotiating for generic medications to be sold at reduced prices in developing countries.

Still, many advocacy groups continue to criticize the cost of the drug as it makes it entirely unattainable to the very group most in need of it.