El Paso County hires new medical care provider at jail for $1.4 million more
El Paso County officials are finding it harder to obtain medical care for inmates at the Criminal Justice Center.
"There are very few companies across the country that provide medical services to a jail of this size -- 1,400 or more inmates," Jacqueline Kirby, a spokeswoman with the Sheriff's Office, said Friday.
Kirby said when the county submitted proposals to replace the jail's medical provider for the past two years, only one met all of the county's requirements.
"And the next lowest bid was almost twice as much," she said. "Our previous provider didn't submit a bid for next year."
"Faced with a situation like that, we didn't have much of a choice," said County Commissioner Mark Waller.
On Thursday, commissioners approved a one-year contract, through the end of 2020, with Wellpath, LLC, a provider based in Nashville, Tenn., and specializing in providing health care to jails, prisons and treatment facilities.
The county will pay Wellpath $8.6 million, around $1.4 million more than it paid the previous provider last year.
Kirby said the county plans to follow a growing national trend of using a community-based model instead of relying on a private contractor.
"We didn't have time to do that for next year," she said. "But we think it'll work better for us because we can rely on the local medical community, particularly where mental health is concerned."
Kirby said specifics about that model, including cost, are still being determined.
"An audit of our jail and our medical services indicated that's the way we should go," she said.
Kirby said the county focuses more on the quality of care than the cost.
"We also have to care for inmates who have preexisting health conditions when they come in," she said. "Many of them have had little or no access to regular medical care. So we make sure they get it here, and continue to get it after they're released.
Wellpath is expected to begin its contract with the county by the end of the year.
