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Population growth, medical-contract negotiations drive DOC supplemental requests
Summary
Legislative analysts said population increases and higher-than-expected medical utilization are behind a multi-million-dollar supplemental request for county and out-of-state placements and DOC medical services; contract negotiations could raise costs further.
The Idaho Department of Correction told a budget subcommittee on Feb. 4 that rising populations and medical utilization in 2025 are behind supplemental requests totaling several million dollars to cover county jail, out‑of‑state placements and prison medical services.
Analyst Noah Peterson said the county and out-of-state placement program requested roughly $1.9 million in population-driven increases in 2025; the medical services division requested about $5.96 million to cover higher utilization than originally projected. The DOC asked the legislature to make the population-driven increases ongoing in fiscal year 2026, estimating a $4.03 million annual increase to reflect updated population projections.
Contract negotiations: Peterson told the committee the department is negotiating with its current medical-services contractor and projected a 10 percent increase under successful renegotiation. If negotiations fail and the contract were put out to bid, the agency warned the medical contract could rise by 30 to 40 percent.
Per-diem rates and statutory context: Committee members asked how daily per-diem rates are set; Director Tewalt and analyst Peterson said the state code establishes county per-diem tiers (the committee packet showed $57.50 for stays under 7 days, $77.50 for 8 days or more, and $84.45 for out-of-state placements as the amounts used in the fiscal analysis). Tewalt said the tiered county rate is intended to encourage timely state pickup of detainees from county jails.
Why it matters: Peterson emphasized the increase is primarily population-driven — the daily per-diems themselves did not change from prior projections — and the larger out-year effect depends on the outcome of the medical-contract negotiations.
Next steps: The supplemental and the department’s FY26 requests will proceed through budget deliberations. The committee requested supporting documentation and population projections supporting the requested increases.
