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February 11, 2007
AL: Prison Health Services Receives Extension of $56 million Contract
Committee approves extension of prisons health care contract
By BOB JOHNSON, Associated Press Writer
Published: February 9, 2007
The Alabama Department of Corrections was given approval Friday to pay $56 million to extend a contract with a Tennessee company to provide medical care to state inmates, a contract that raised questions when first awarded.
The Legislature's Contract Review Committee approved a one-year extension of the contract with Prison Health Services of Brentwood, Tenn., to provide care for more than 24,000 inmates through October. The original contract for $143 million for three years was awarded in 2003 amid concerns by some legislators that the contract was not subjected to the state's competitive bid process.
Prisons Commissioner Richard Allen said the $56 million is more than the per-year cost of the original contract because of the rising cost of health care and because the original contract did not include inmates in work release centers.
Several committee members questioned why the prison system used an emergency contract to extend the contract last October instead of taking the extension before the committee, which reviews state contracts. The committee cannot stop a contract, but can delay one for 45 days before it goes to the governor for his signature.
Allen apologized to committee members, saying the contract was running out and that the extension was not ready in time to submit to the committee's Nov. 2 meeting.
"We were just trying to get health care for the inmates," Allen said.
Allen said the prison system will request proposals from health care providers and plans to enter into a new contract for health care for prisoners late this year.
The committee also approved an almost $50 million two-year extension of a contract with a South Carolina company, Health Management Resources-Governmental Services Inc., to provide health care at the state's three veterans nursing homes in Bay Minette, Alexander City and Huntsville.
Friday's meeting was the first for the committee since the Nov. 7 elections and committee members urged agency heads to bid contracts whenever possible. The committee considers contracts that have not been through the process of seeking formal sealed bids, although many have gone through a more informal process where agencies seek proposals.
On Friday the committee considered more than 160 contracts worth more than $170 million.
"All of these are no-bid contracts and any of these could have been bid," said committee vice chairman Sen. Roger Bedford, D-Russellville.
Committee chairman, Rep. Neal Morrison, D-Cullman, said the committee hopes to cut down over the next four years on the number of contracts that have not been bid.
Morrison also told agency officials at Friday's meeting not to justify contracts by saying the work is being paid for with federal dollars.
"You and I pay federal taxes every paycheck. If the taxpayers are footing the bill, someone is going to be accountable to us," Morrison said.
http://www.timesdaily.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070209/APN/702093158&cachetime=5
Posted by lois at February 11, 2007 10:08 PM