Wagoner County commissioners approve routine contracts, affirm hospital billing arrangement for jail inmates

Wagoner County commissioners on Aug. 4 approved multiple routine contracts and funding items and reviewed an existing agreement with a local hospital that establishes how prisoner medical bills are handled.

County Jail minister Ryan Russell told commissioners the prisoner-medical agreement originated in 2017 and sets payment schedules and pricing when jail inmates need outside care. "The county was giving up the expenses of preexisting conditions of prisoners when they come to the jail," Russell said. He described the agreement as clarifying that the county will cover medical care tied to jail incidents (for example, an injury occurring inside the facility) while preexisting conditions will be billed to the prisoner. "This agreement just kinda continues that, plus it gives us a payment schedule specifically for, like, CT scans," Russell said.

The commissioners voted to approve the agreement by roll call.

Other routine items approved included an EODD REAP grant closeout and signage for Oak Grove Fire Department, an upgraded postage machine for the county clerk's office on state contract, an online-auction service agreement with Bitadoo, renewal of the Porter Public Schools resource officer…