The state Supreme Court dropped a lump of coal — and a potentially costly one at that — into taxpayers’ stockings with its ruling regarding inmate medical care.
The court ruled 8-0 in December that counties are liable for inmates’ medical care even if the ailments predate their arrival at the jail. The decision came in a dispute involving the Oklahoma County jail, which had refused $2.2 million in payments for some prisoners during a three-year span because the care was for inmates’ pre-existing medical conditions.
The Supreme Court noted that state law says a provider of medical treatment to the incarcerated can seek payment from the inmate and the county. Since many inmates are indigent or lack extensive financial means, county jails most often will wind up on the hook for those expenses.
The ruling is a severe blow for counties — devastating was the adjective used by Dave Herbert, who lobbies for county officials. Herbert made the point that in the large majority of cases, county jail inmates have been arrested for state crimes but are held at the county lockup.
While Oklahoma and Tulsa counties will be hit hard because they house the largest county jails, so too will smaller counties. Oklahoma County Commissioner Ray Vaughn said a county with a small jail budget could be pinched financially by just one inmate with a heart condition.
Vaughn wants help from the Legislature, where he served 16 years. He’ll seek a bill that amends the law to say counties are excluded from having to pay inmates’ care for pre-existing conditions. Vaughn said providers would still be able to seek reimbursement through Medicaid and from a state fund already in place.
We’ll see if his former colleagues come to the rescue.
— The Oklahoman, Oklahoma City
Opinion
In our view: Inmate medical care
- Opinion
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Our View: Victims should come first
Millions of dollars in donations have poured in from around the world since the May 22, 2011, tornado. Those donations represent money from lemonade stands, charity auctions, corporate gifts and celebrity checks, just to name a few. In fact, one year later donations continue to come to Joplin.
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Beth Meeker, guest columnist: Same-sex marriage battle a quest for equal rights
I would like to take a moment to reply to guest columnist Anson Burlingame’s, “The Marriage Debate” (Globe, May 13).
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Sunday Forum: 2012 graduation speakers key on tornado, mall school and president’s visit
Editor’s note: In addition to speeches by President Barack Obama and Gov. Jay Nixon, Joplin High School’s top students addressed graduates, faculty, parents and other guests packed into the Leggett & Platt Athletic Center on the Missouri Southern State University campus. Following are the text of those speeches.
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Geoff Caldwell, guest columnist: Pack mentality takes truth as a casualty
President Obama’s Joplin graduation speech Monday showed that while there’s the political “right,” there’s also a very active “rabid” political right.
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Your View: ‘Study’ can mean anything
A few evenings ago, I watched a television program on the science of marriage.
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Our View: Support for museum
How can you tell the story of Joplin without the accounts of its mining history?
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Our View: Finding middle ground
The G-8 summit held last week in Camp David ended as expected.
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Anson Burlingame, guest columnist: Class of 2012 upholds character, hope
My oldest granddaughter was part of the class of 2012 from Joplin High School, and I attended the ceremony on Monday night.
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Scott Charton, guest columnist: 'Deadline in Disaster' film a story about storytellers
Local newspapers are at their best when they help their communities confront, understand, endure and overcome shared challenges.
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Our View: Make voting easiser
This year’s ballot will not include a proposed constitutional amendment that photo identification be required at the polls in Missouri. Good.
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