Schenectady County sheriff seeks $85,000 amendment to support dedicated nursing for jail medication‑assisted treatment

The Schenectady County Public Safety committee on June 30 approved forwarding to the full Legislature a budget amendment request to add $85,000 to the sheriff's office budget to support jail medication‑assisted treatment (MAT) operations, including a dedicated LPN position to administer MAT.

Sheriff's correctional officials told the committee the county's jail MAT program expanded substantially after the county's contract with PrimeCare in 2023, rising from roughly two dozen people to averaging about 58–60 people per day currently receiving MAT for opioid use disorder. Superintendent Ron Walsh and Captain Greg Kufari described operational constraints: administering methadone and buprenorphine is time‑consuming, requires one‑on‑one observation to prevent diversion and demands nursing time that competes with other medication administration across the jail population.

Captain Kufari said the jail can take three hours to process and administer MAT to a small group of detainees because of required observation and diversion‑prevention steps; the department seeks a dedicated MAT LPN to ensure timely, consistent dosing and documentation. Officials said Oasis advised that opioid‑settlement funds could help offset the position cost.

The committee recorded a voice vote advancing the budget amendment to the floor; final appropriation requires full legislative action.

Speakers quoted or paraphrased in this article are identified by name and role as they appear in the meeting record.