Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Corrections Healthcare topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
County approves spending for detention medical bills and $100,000 for MAT injections; vendor rep urges non‑proprietary procurement language
Summary
The board approved $53,664.34 to cover prior detention medical invoices and authorized up to $100,000 to buy Sublocade for the jail's medication‑assisted treatment program. A vendor representative urged the county to avoid naming single-brand products and instead reference 'long‑acting injectable buprenorphine.'
The Carroll County Board of Commissioners approved two items April 10 related to medical care in the detention center: payment of past medical invoices and spending authority for medication‑assisted treatment (MAT) supplies.
Procurement staff asked the board to approve payment of $53,664.34 to Prime Care Medical Inc. for catastrophic inmate medical bills incurred through February 2025. "This particular request is to pay an invoice for what are pass through bills, that we receive for inmates," a procurement official said. The board approved the spending authority by voice vote.
Separately, the board approved spending up to $100,000 to purchase Sublocade — a long‑acting injectable buprenorphine product — for the detention center's MAT program. County staff said the item will be procured through an existing term contract with Prime Care Medical Inc. and funded with opioid-restitution grant dollars.
Public comment followed. Kevin Schroeder, regional business specialist for Braeburn (a manufacturer of a long‑acting buprenorphine product), told the board that when procurement language specifies a single brand, it can constrain options. He recommended the county use a product‑neutral phrase such as "long‑acting injectable buprenorphine" rather than naming a single manufacturer. "My recommendation is for the the commission board to use the term long acting injectable or long acting injectable buprenorphine, not specifically 1 product," Schroeder said.
Why it matters: Jail-based MAT is an evidence-based approach to reduce overdose risk and stabilize detainees with opioid use disorder. Commissioners approved both items by voice vote. No commissioner recorded a dissent on the motions.
Ending: Procurement and detention staff said they will continue to work with the vendor and MAT program staff to ensure medication access for eligible inmates while complying with procurement rules and grant requirements.
