DPSCS fiscal 2026 budget rises as audit flaws in inmate health contracting draw scrutiny

The Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services' fiscal 2026 allowance grows by about $22.6 million to roughly $1.9 billion, but legislative analysts and a recent audit found lapses in contracting and contract oversight for incarcerated-person health services that preceded a vendor change in 2024.

Catherine Barber, a budget analyst with the Department of Legislative Services, told the Public Safety and Administration Subcommittee that DPSCS’s fiscal 2026 budget “increases by $22,600,000 or about 1% to $1,900,000,000,” and highlighted an Office of Legislative Audits (OLA) fiscal compliance audit (November 2024) documenting nine findings tied to medical contracts and procurements from April 2018 to December 2023.

The audit and the DLS analysis focus on the department’s decision to transition from YesCare to Centurion of Maryland for medical and mental-health services. Barber noted the Board of Public Works awarded two Centurion contracts in May 2024 for correctional facility and pretrial medical care; the presentation recorded multi‑year contract totals as described in the DLS exhibit materials. DLS reported that the contracts…