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Lawrence County prison board reports 144 inmates and flags medical-transport costs and contractor limits
Summary
At the May 20 Lawrence County Prison Board meeting the warden reported 144 inmates, including five juveniles; the board discussed out-of-county housing, billing and collections, and concerns that contractor PrimeCare cannot provide hospital-level care for some inmates, driving transports and overtime.
At its May 20 meeting the Lawrence County Prison Board heard a population update from the warden that the county jail held 144 inmates, including five juveniles and 19 women.
"Today, we have a 144 inmates at Lawrence County Jail," the warden said, adding that the facility was housing inmates transferred from Fayette, Westmoreland and Washington counties for court and separation purposes. He also confirmed the jail had taken a juvenile transfer earlier that week, bringing the juvenile count to five.
The board discussed financial and operational effects of medical transports. The board chair said inmates moved to outside hospitals remain on the county's custody rolls while hospitalized and raised concerns about the private medical contractor’s ability to provide hospital-level care. "PrimeCare ... they can't perform the things that a hospital needs to perform for a lot of these people," the chair said, noting the county incurs transport costs and staff time when inmates require higher-level medical treatment.
Financial figures presented to the board showed $617,400 billed through April and $545,400 collected year-to-date (January–April). The warden said collections were "on track" and that, at the current pace, the county could exceed its target revenue from inmate housing agreements.
Members discussed ongoing recruitment efforts and a potential agreement with another county to house additional male inmates as a revenue and capacity option. The warden said staff who visited a neighboring county’s juvenile program would prepare a detailed report for the board.
Sheriff representatives and jail leadership described overtime pressure tied to medical cases; the sheriff estimated roughly 54–55% of the overtime budget had been consumed in recent months because of particularly severe inmate illnesses.
The board took no formal policy vote beyond accepting the population report; members asked staff to continue tracking transports, contractor performance and recruitment options and to bring additional information in future meetings.
