By Terry Witt – Spotlight Senior Reporter

            Levy County Sheriff Bobby McCallum said on Tuesday that county taxpayers could be on the hook for hundreds of thousands of dollars of medical care for one inmate.

            Speaking to Levy County Commissioners at their regular board meeting, McCallum said one of his sentenced inmates has run up a medical bill of $400,000 and the costs are likely to go much higher.

            The unnamed inmate needs two additional surgeries at Shands Hospital in Gainesville and is expected to remain under the care of hospital doctors for an additional 21 days after the final surgery.

            McCallum said the sheriff’s office carries inmate medical insurance. The sheriff’s office pays the first $20,000 for an inmate’s medical care and the insurance will pay up to $250,000 of an inmate’s medical cost.

            “This one looks like it’s going to be astronomical,” McCallum said. “At this point, we’re $150,000 in the hole. This one will grow tremendously in our estimation. We’re working within the system with the court, the public defender, and the state attorney because he or she (the inmate) has been sentenced according to the law. There’s not much room for the court to give us much leeway with that.”

            The numbers McCallum cited didn’t include the cost of around-the-clock security provided by the sheriff’s office at the hospital. A deputy must guard the inmate while housed in the hospital.

            McCallum said the irony is the inmate was sentenced by a judge to 364 days in the county jail. If the inmate had been sentenced to 365 days the prisoner would have been sent to state prison. The prison would have paid the costs.

            The sheriff said state law says a correctional facility is responsible for the care and control of its inmates including medical care. He said the Florida Legislature hasn’t responded favorably to requests by law enforcement and by county governments for assistance in paying for county inmate medical care.

            “I never seem to be able to do something about this. It’s not a new problem. We don’t ever seem to be able to make headway on these medical issues,” McCallum said.

            The sheriff said he brought the situation to the board because the medical expenses being incurred by this inmate exceed what the sheriff’s office can pay out of its budget. McCallum operates the jail for the board. The board has to pay for the inmate’s medical costs.

            He said state inmate medical costs are paid by Medicaid when a sentenced inmate that is Medicaid-eligible is housed in a state prison. Counties aren’t eligible to use Medicaid to pay for inmate medical care.

            “I think that’s wrong. That’s something maybe you could look into for us,” McCallum said.

            McCallum said his department doesn’t budget for this type of massive medical expense for one inmate. He said the costs the county shoulders, beyond what insurance pays, are borne by Levy County taxpayers.

            “It affects counties like Levy County that have a smaller tax base much more than a larger county that can absorb these costs,” McCallum said.

            County Commissioner John Meeks said one of the problems with counties being unable to access Medicaid for inmates is the Legislature’s reluctance to expand Medicaid care in Florida.

            “The resistance of the Legislature to do that is part of the problem. We got to convince those folks that we’re not doing it to aid bad people, the people in jail, we’re trying to help taxpayers who have to pay the bills for all of this,” Meeks said.

            Commissioner Lilly Rooks said something needs to be done about the problem.

            “If we all don’t do something and they (state lawmakers) don’t do something we might not have any sheriff’s department. The money’s going to be going to inmate medical care,” she said.

            McCallum assured commissioners that his staff and a company that specializes in closely examining inmate medical bills is making certain the county pays only what is owed and there are no excess charges added to the bill.

            Commission Chairman Rock Meeks asked if the county will ever be able to recover some of the funds it spends on this particular inmate’s medical care. McCallum said because the inmate is in the custody, care, and control of the Levy County Detention Center the costs of medical care fall on the county. He doubts the county could ever recover those costs after the inmate serves his or her sentence.

            Answering another question from resident Dana Sheffield, McCallum said Levy County is not responsible for paying the medical costs of Gilchrist County inmates housed at the Levy County Detention Center. The Gilchrist inmates are being housed in Levy County until their home county can build a new jail. The contract with Gilchrist County requires Gilchrist to pay for the medical costs of its inmates.

            McCallum said the housing of Gilchrist County inmates has actually helped the sheriff’s office’s bottom line. Housing Gilchrist inmates has generated approximately $120,000 to $140,000 in additional revenue. McCallum added that food costs are up and other costs are increasing at the jail, but he said overall the county is earning revenue by housing Gilchrist County inmates.

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Board of County Commission Regular Meeting July 5, 2022; Posted July 6, 2022