By Scott Allen —
County commissioners on Monday approved a health services agreement with Southern Health Partners who will serve prisoners’ medical needs at the Gillespie County Jail.
The agreement will allow a full-time nurse to be available to 40 inmates (with provisions for overage) for eight hours a day and a nurse on call at all times.
The total cost for the agreement is $111,420 per year. If inmates number more than 40, those are charged $1.25 per day. Contracts were also available at 60 and 80 prisoners.
“Your biggest cost is the staff, your nurse,” said Tim Quintana, marketing representative for Southern Health Partners. “That’s why a differential in population doesn’t cause that increase to go up that much.”
In order to cover 60 inmates, the cost would be about $4,000 more and for 80 inmates the cost would go up about $9,000 more.
Commissioners decided to go with the 40-inmate agreement in the first year of this service.
Quintana said that an addendum can be made in the future if the county gets more inmates that need to be covered.
“We’re trying to help out and do what’s most cost effective for the county,” Quintana said.
Southern Health Partners currently works with 18 counties in Texas.
Deputy’s pay increase
After a discussion between County commissioners and Sheriff Buddy Mills, a decision was made to approve a pay increase for four sheriff’s deputies, all of whom are certified peace officers.
The salary will be increased to $21.12, hourly, due to the deputy’s experience.
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