Jackson Free Press

During Monday's regular board meeting, Hinds County supervisors discussed a potential change in medical service for inmates, which the county currently handles on its own. The meeting was open to the public, but crucial details had already been discussed privately—with no notice provided to the media.

Hinds County Sheriff Malcolm McMillin, a longtime proponent of improvements to Hinds County's prison system, was unaware of the behind-the-doors discussions supervisors held last week with two medical service providers: Medical Partners of America and Correctional Risk Services. On Monday, Supervisor Doug Anderson brought the MPA proposal to the table. Supervisor George Smith placed CRS on his agenda.

"This is something that you all are dealing with, and it's a proposal for you all to deal with—and this is my first exposure to it," McMillin said during Monday's meeting.

Supervisors Charles Barbour and Peggy Calhoun voiced concern about the proposals, including MPA's "Medicare-based formula."

According to a summary of MPA's proposal, the company is offering Hinds County a "Medicare rate," which could be anywhere from 30 to 75 percent of normal medical fees, but will also charge an unspecified premium, in addition to a 15 percent surcharge.

"I don't think we're going to save any money by adding these additional charges into the existing rates," Calhoun said Monday. "I don't see our local hospitals providing services at Medicare rates. As a matter of fact, they don't want to accept our inmates."

Barbour addressed the problem of bringing inmates to hospitals. "You've got (MPA) saying you're going to sneak people in the hospital, and people aren't going to see them. On the face of it, that's ridiculous," he said.

"People always promise you all this stuff. The minute you sign a contract, they remind you of the fine print," he added.

Among CRS's fine print is an additional cost for treating mental illness, substance abuse and sexually transmitted infection, including HIV/AIDS.

"The concern I have there is that 60 percent of our inmates are receiving mental treatment. They are mentally ill," said Calhoun, who added that eight percent of inmates have tested HIV positive.

Anderson expressed disdain as Barbour and Calhoun raised questions about his proposal, at one point telling Barbour to "stop talking." Supervisors unanimously agreed to consider both proposals further, but Anderson refused to add Barbour's stipulation to look into how much money the companies had paid the National Association of Counties, which endorses CRS.

"We just have two supervisors who want to help a salesman, as a courtesy. Every time we spend a dollar, they make money, so they want to spend more dollars," Barbour told the Jackson Free Press, referring to Anderson and Smith.

Barbour and Calhoun have clashed with Anderson over other contracts recently. Over the past few months, they acted as pesky roadblocks to a $13 million parking garage designed by Anderson's former son-in-law, which Anderson steamrolled to approval with the help of Supervisor George Smith and Board President Ronnie Chappell.