Thurston County to seek new jail pharmacy contract; commissioners discuss aligning medical contracts

At an agenda-setting work session Sept. 2, 2025, the Thurston County Board of County Commissioners reviewed a plan to issue a request for proposals for pharmaceutical services at the Thurston County Correctional Facility after the current vendor contract with Omnicare ends Dec. 31, 2025.

"We currently had a contract with Omnicare for pharmaceutical services, there since 01/01/2015. This contract will terminate on 12/31/2025," said Undersheriff Ruben Menzies, who presented the item to the board and asked that staff be authorized to go to RFP.

Commissioners and county staff discussed timing and scope of the procurement and whether the jail pharmacy contract should be aligned with the county's separate medical services contract (referred to in the meeting as HTS), which expires in December 2027. Commissioner Wayne Fournier, the vice chair, pushed for shorter terms and coordinated procurement, saying, "If you bundle things together, you get cost savings." Menzies and county staff agreed to explore options to time contracts so they expire together or to shorten terms on the pharmacy contract to permit future combined solicitations.

The session also addressed a constituent email about how detainees are billed for doctor visits and prescriptions. Menzies noted that federal and state benefits such as Medicaid and Social Security can be suspended after 30 days in custody and explained the separation between the county's medical services contract (which covers clinical visits and prescribing) and the pharmaceutical contract (which covers procurement and delivery of medications). He said the billing for an individual's doctor visit or prescription is a separate issue from the jail's pharmacy contract and must be handled within broader policy choices. "Most people don't wanna spend their commissary money on seeing a doctor or getting prescriptions because they would rather have commissary items," Menzies said, describing how detainees respond to out-of-pocket charges.

Commissioner Caroline Mejia confirmed she received the constituent email and had forwarded it to Menzies earlier in the day; the board asked staff to distribute the email to all commissioners and said they would consider whether further discussion or a separate meeting is needed. County staff also said the vice chair's office will meet with sheriff's office staff to review contract timelines and options for aligning or shortening contract terms and to consider how future MOUD (medications for opioid use disorder) services might be procured.

There was no recorded formal vote during the work session; commissioners indicated general agreement to move forward with planning the RFP and further review of billing and contract-alignment options. Staff committed to circulate the constituent email to the full board after the meeting and to schedule follow-up discussions with the vice chair.

The remainder of the afternoon agenda — including proclamations for National Voter Registration Day, First Responder Day, National Suicide Prevention Month and Hispanic Heritage Month, a county manager update on the Rainier brush fire and Washington Department of Ecology matters, and routine consent and voucher items — was discussed briefly but not substantively during the work session.

The board's business meeting was scheduled for 2 p.m. the same day, when formal action on consent items and proclamations may occur.