Tuesday, November 13, 2012

TDCJ budget request: Nuther $141 million needed for prison healthcare next biennium

Unless it reduces the number of prisoners to whom it provides healthcare, the Legislature must spend $141 million more on prisoner healthcare next biennium, the state prison system told the Lege in its budget request.

From TDCJ's Legislative Appropriations Request summary document (pdf), here's a tidbit on how much the Lege underfunded prison health care last biennium and the amount needed to make it whole at current prison population levels: "In an effort to operate within funding levels established for the 2012-13 biennium, significant operational changes were made" including "Reduced funding for offender health care by $132 million." Further:
According to the university providers, additional funding of $141 million is critical to maintain operations and ensure effective overall quality of care within the system. Of this amount, a projected $86 million is required to bring the base level of funding to the projected levels of 2014-15 expenses to be incurred for the delivery of services. Funding less than this level, which takes into account the rising costs of health care, could require elimination of services. University providers have drastically reduced staffing levels for many health care components and are encountering significant difficulties in the ability to recruit and retain the professional staff necessary to provide care at TDCJ correctional facilities. Consequently, $32 million is included in this request to provide market level salary adjustments to the offender health care delivery staff. The correctional health care system is also facing critical capital equipment needs for x-ray, dental and other equipment estimated to total $10 million. Finally, other initiatives at a cost of $13 million will provide primarily for the restoration of key health care staff such as nursing staff at targeted correctional units.
Bottom line, the Lege underfunded prison healthcare by $132 million last biennium, ponying up about half that amount in emergency funding when UTMB threatened to stop providing services. Going forward, though, unless prison population levels decline, the Lege is looking at a nine-figure increase in prison healthcare spending.

10 comments:

Prison Doc said...

Everybody I know is afraid that nothing will happen, that the money won't be forthcoming. They can't parole people fast enough to solve the financial hickey. Healthcare must have more money; you can only get so much blood out of a turnip and this one is already squeezed mightily dry.

sunray's wench said...

And of course they haven't been able to squeeze any more out of the inmate families though the medical tax either. But as the predictions for that were hugely inflated, I do wonder if the figures in this latest request are also inflated simply because they know the Lege wont give them all of what they ask for?

Gritsforbreakfast said...

SW, IMO it's not too overstated. They now say they're $132 million short in the current biennium; my own calculation was $126.5 million. And the increase they're asking for to $141 million is lower than the rate of inflation for health services. So it's at least in the ballpark.

Helga Dill , TX CURE said...

As long as the Parole Board denies parole to critically ill ( amputees and blind inmates) they deem a "danger to society", namely sex offenders 70+ years old , the medical budget will keep breaking them.
Helga Dill, TX CURE

Anonymous said...

That is because the Parole Board do not even read the files most of the time. They release based on how well their Geritol is working that day. They do not even release the people who have done well in prison. They will always figure out a way to release the bad actors first. This seems like a hidden agenda just asking for repeat offenders. The ones who behaves in prison is not release because they have sense enough to behave. They got to keep those beds full. They could careless about medical care for inmates. When family members pay the $100.00 fees, call down to the unit and asked why they cannot get their teeth clean and what you get is a tough talking woman that will tell you the inmate paidthe fee not the family member and there is nothing you can do to effect her job security. Well, that is what you hear from the Crain Unit. I cannot wait to see the next scheme the lawyers of the LEDGE comes up with to get out of another fine mess the parole board created by playing second time around judges and not obeying the current state laws concerning parole.

Anonymous said...

Perhaps if they didn't give such long sentences (compare ours with other modern countries, we win) and they wouldn't imprison everyone so the prosecuting attorneys would make points, this might not be such a big problem. I think they should take it out of the legislators pay, they might use the heads for a change!

Anonymous said...

To both anonymous sounds like we have had contact with some of the same people. Bottom line is the system does not care about our family members and they don't care if they die that will make room for a new one. I'm sick to death of DA's saying young people are a danger when they know absolutely nothing about the person, but let's lock them away for as long as possible and give them very little medical and mental health treatment as possible, even tho they have been under constant care since they were three years old.

Anonymous said...

Texas doesn't go in for deficit spending (spending more money than we have). I like the way the federal government does things-we just borrow from the Chinese and spend it. I say we should, like a drunken sailor on PCP, just blow all that borrowed money. Like the song says, "Don't start thinking about tomorrow."

Anonymous said...

"Don't start thinking about tomorrow." I hear they have the kids singing that song at the beginning of the school day. Something the teachers union came up with, I believe.

Nurseypooh said...

"Restore the nursing staff" Wow would be a miracle! They have cut medical staffing to the bone! No wonder they can't keep anyone or recruit. I'm now employed elsewhere and truly enjoy my job. Prison healthcare is a sinking ship and it's going to take a lot to plug up the whole. I was trying to hang on due to the benefits but had to leave finally they were working us to death and still are from what I hear from others still there! I actually feel like a nurse again and am helping people making a difference. I wish them all well who are still there hanging on by a thread. Glad I moved on.