24/7 MEDICAL APPROVED, SHERIFF COMMENDS COMMISSION

Today signifies a major step forward for both this office, and our county as a whole. For over seven years, I have fought, tooth-and-nail, for twenty-four seven medical coverage for our county jail. Today, our county commission has voted to approve this monumental step forward.
 
The Office of the Sheriff commends our county commission for working with us to better serve the inmates, and navigate potential liabilities from not having a certified healthcare provider on the grounds at all hours. Today’s vote brings our county into the twenty-first century, as nearly every major correctional facility has around-the-clock medical staff. In 2020, the commission approved sixteen hours of coverage, but soon, it will become all day, every day.
 
With the rise in the fentanyl epidemic, incarcerated inmates, generally, suffer from more health issues than ever before. By making sure we have medical staff on campus at all times, we can assure the highest quality of care being provided to our inmates. Following a consent decree in the early 1990s, the WCSO correctional facility was mandated by a federal judge to have twenty-four-hour medical care, however the decree was lifted in 2006. We have not had all-day medical coverage for almost twenty years, or more. At this time, it is unsure whether the decree was ever followed, in that aspect, but this may possibly be the first time the Walker County Jail will have certified medical personnel at all times.
 
This is something that I have seen implemented with great success in many other county jails, and I am incredibly thankful for the commitment by our commission to making our jail a place where inmates can be changed in a positive way. If someone can start their own journey off being physically healthy, then their chances of coming back to jail plummet. We, again, thank the commission for their vote of approval, and we cannot wait to make this dream into reality.