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policy does not, however, describe how long the cellmate requirement should last or if any staff must approve the removal of the cellmate requirement. The Suicide Prevention Program Policy Statement 5324.08 does not describe any process or procedure that requires cellmate assignments for inmates coming off of suicide watch. The Warden stated there was no BOP policy mandating that an inmate coming off of suicide watch have a cellmate, but that doing so was “sound correctional judgment.” The OIG’s investigation and review revealed that there were knowledge gaps among MCC New York staff regarding Epstein’s cellmate requirement, indicating that improved communication with institutional staff would be beneficial. The OIG therefore recommends that the BOP implement a requirement that all inmates coming off of suicide watch or psychological observation to be assigned cellmates with criteria for exceptions based on the particular individual or security considerations, provide guidance for determining when a cellmate is no longer required, and implement a process for approving, documenting, and communicating to institutional staff the assignment and removal of cellmates for these inmates. 2. The BOP should establish procedures to ensure inmates at high risk for suicide and for whom a cellmate is recommended will continue to have a cellmate until the recommendation is changed or rescinded, including establishing a contingency plan for cellmate re-assignment, with criteria for exceptions based on the particular individual or security considerations. The OIG's investigation and review found that there was no contingency plan in place to assign Epstein a new cellmate when his then-cellmate was transferred out of MCC New York. Although the failure to assign a new cellmate was due, in part, to SHU staff failing to make required notifications and supervisory staff failing to adequate supervise SHU staff, the gap in cellmate assignment was also due to the lack of a contingency plan. The Evening Watch SHU Officer in Charge told the OIG that although he knew that Epstein needed a new cellmate, he said that SHU staff did not have the authority to assign a new cellmate, which was consistent with what MCC New York supervisory personnel told the OIG. A contingency plan, such as a list of alternate cellmates, would have increased the likelihood that Epstein would not have been housed alone at the time of his death. The OIG therefore recommends that the BOP develop contingency plans for cellmate assignment for high-risk inmates with criteria for exceptions based on the particular individual or security considerations. 3. The BOP should evaluate its current process for obtaining and documenting approval for social or legal visits while an inmate is on suicide watch or psychological observation, which allows for institution-specific variations in the process, and provide guidance on standard components that each institution should include in its process to mitigate security issues that can arise when an inmate is on suicide watch or psychological observation. According to the BOP’s Suicide Prevention Program Policy Statement 5324.08 and the MCC New York Institution Supplement to the suicide prevention policy, inmates on suicide watch must be under constant observation by staff or trained inmate observers. The MCC New York Institution Supplement policy states that only with rare exceptions that are approved by the Captain as well by the Associate Warden of Programs will visitation either social or legal be permitted for inmates on suicide watch. Additionally, the 111 DOJ-OGR- 00023478