MANSFIELD — Capt. Chris Blunk said he is satisfied with the direction of medical services provided by Southern Health Partners at the Richland County Jail.
Blunk, the jail administrator, and Rachel Troyer, the county’s central services administrator, met Thursday morning with the Richland County Board of Commissioners to seek approval of a one-year contract renewal with the Tennessee-based provider.
Commissioners approved last March a one-year contract with Southern Health Partners, which included the option for three, one-year renewals.
Each of the first two renewals would carry 4-percent increases in price. The third year would be negotiable, Troyer previously said.
On Thursday, commissioners approved the first one-year renewal. The $728,613.60 contract will start March 1.
‘Enhanced option’ services proved too costly
In January 2024, Sheriff Steve Sheldon and Blunk said they hoped to sign a contract that would provide “enhanced option” in the department’s next jail medical services contract.
This would include the addition of a second Licensed Practical Nurse at the jail 24/7 (including holidays) and a “very comprehensive (drug/alcohol) treatment program” for inmates.
But once proposals were received from potential providers, those enhancements carried costs between $1.1 and $1.8 million annually, Blunk said previously.
In December 2024, commissioners approved a policies and procedures audit of the county jail through the Legal and Liability Management Institute — a $28,000 analysis.
The company, based in Indiana, was to spend about two weeks looking at operations in the 266-bed jail that opened in 2008, with a particular focus on intake and medical services, according to previous Richland Source reporting.
Blunk previously said LLMI would provide the first “outside” audit he has seen during his 26 years working with the Richland County Sheriff’s Office.
It is currently unknown whether or not the audit has been completed. The jail administrator did not make any comments regarding its status during Thursday’s meeting.
Voicemails to Blunk’s office Thursday afternoon were not returned by time of publication.
