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Sheriff says Prime Health billing 'scrub' cut inmate medical costs nearly in half; body‑camera rollout planned
Summary
Sheriff Campbell told the board that outsourcing medical‑bill review to Prime Health reduced inmate medical charges from about $47,000 to roughly $29,000 for July–December and reported 10 body cameras and two new vehicles arriving, with officer training expected by Feb. 1.
Gates County Sheriff Campbell reported to the commissioners that a review process with Prime Health reduced the sheriff's office inmate medical bills for July–December from about $47,000 to a little over $29,000, which he said saved the county nearly $18,000.
"When we get inmate medical bills, we send these bills directly to Prime Health. They do what's called a scrub...it's almost cutting the bills almost in half," the sheriff said, presenting a one‑page summary to the board. He framed inmate medical costs as a county expense and said the savings are welcome.
The sheriff also said the department has taken delivery of 10 body cameras and plans training with officers so they will be operational by Feb. 1; he reported two new patrol vehicles and said the office handled 501 calls in December.
The report was received without public comment at the meeting; commissioners thanked the sheriff for the update. The claims about dollar amounts and savings were made by the sheriff during his update; the county's finance office or the auditing firm was not quoted to corroborate those numbers in the meeting record.
