Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Correctional Health Contracts topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Jail oversight board approves one‑year extension of Wellpath health contract
Summary
Delaware County Jail Oversight Board voted to approve a one‑year extension of the county's contract with Wellpath for correctional health care, a measure county staff say is already budgeted and will add nursing and psychiatry capacity to meet rising clinical needs.
Delaware County's Jail Oversight Board voted to approve a one‑year extension of its contract with Wellpath for correctional health care services.
The board approved the extension during its Jan. 13 meeting after county staff described rising clinical needs at the George W. Hill facility and said the 2025 operating budget already contains the funds to cover the extension. Executive Director O'Malley presented the contract details and the planned changes.
The extension would add full‑time licensed practical nurses and increase psychiatry hours, staff said, and include wage adjustments intended to reduce vacancy rates among LPNs and other health staff. "We've also identified an opportunity to enhance the wages of LPNs to be comparable and competitive and to reduce vacancy rates," Executive Director O'Malley said. O'Malley told the board the county projected 2025 health‑care spending "to be 12,334,000 and some change" and said the additional one‑year extension was projected at approximately $12,000,000.
O'Malley said Wellpath, the county's contractor since March 2022, had worked through the facility transition and helped secure National Commission on Correctional Health Care (NCCHC) accreditation. She said staff had met with Wellpath leadership to refine staffing and service levels to reflect higher acuity among patients and an increase in medication‑assisted treatment (MAT) participants.
Comptroller Phillips moved to approve the extension; Executive Director O'Malley seconded the motion. After board members said "aye," the chair said, "It passes."
Board materials noted the contract's initial term began March 2022, with an original 36‑month term and two one‑year options; the extension under consideration is the next one‑year option. County staff told the board the 2025 operating budget already includes the expected 3% annual increases built into the contract, and that the extension would be reviewed by the county solicitor and presented to County Council for final approval.
The board did not take other formal actions about vendor selection during the meeting; staff said any formal award would be presented later to County Council.
Delaware County officials said they expect to monitor vacancy rates and the impact of wage changes on staffing and costs going forward.
