The News Journal
Posted Friday, February 16, 2007
DOVER -- Correction Commissioner Carl Danberg said Thursday that the state has extended its medical services contract with a private company for two years, but is studying whether it could save money by providing inmate medical care on its own.
In his first appearance before the Joint Finance Committee as the state's prison chief, Danberg said he's still working out what it will cost the state to fulfill an agreement with the U.S. Justice Department to improve health care for the state's prisoners.
While serving as attorney general, Danberg negotiated the consent agreement to resolve a federal investigation of serious deficiencies in the prison health care system disclosed in a 2005 series in The News Journal.
Danberg said the best estimate of what mandated health care improvements will cost next year is $5.3 million. Gov. Ruth Ann Minner proposed a 2008 budget for the department of $243 million. He said he hopes to have a firm number when lawmakers start their rewrite of Minner's budget in late May.
Danberg said his $5.3 million estimate does not include the cost of hiring monitors to ensure the state is living up to the agreement or of a computerized system to keep tabs on inmates' medical conditions. The department is still figuring out what the computer system will look like and Danberg said it probably will have to wait for the 2009 budget.
The public probably will not be able to hear lawmakers debate whether to budget for more prison health care staff or services. When the JFC debates its changes to the budget, the meetings are closed to the public. The committee emerges only to vote on each department's budget.
Danberg cautioned that the study of moving away from using a health care contractor may show the state won't save money because of the high cost of hiring doctors and nurses. But, he said, it's an option the state should explore.
"It's the second-biggest cost in the Department of Correction and we want to make sure we are meeting our obligations in the most cost-effective way possible," he said.
There was little public comment on Danberg's presentation -- or on the issue of prison health care.
Drewry Fennell, executive director for the American Civil Liberties Union's Delaware Chapter, was the only person who spoke on the health care issue. She said she hopes the state tries to go beyond the agreement's minimum requirements.
"I'm concerned that when the Justice Department leaves, things go back to where they were before," she said. "We have to keep this issue in the forefront."
Sen. Margaret Rose Henry, D-Wilmington East, who sponsored an unsuccessful prison health care reform bill last spring, said she thinks the lack of public criticism reflects confidence in Danberg.
"He's getting a honeymoon right now," she said. "But if people don't think they're addressing the issue, it won't last."
Lawmakers told Danberg and state budget officials they're also worried about whether the state's probation and parole officers are earning a fair salary.
Committee members cautioned that if a soon-to-be-completed comparative study shows that the officers are not being paid fairly, they may take matters into their own hands.
"This has been dragging on for too long," said Rep. Dennis Williams, D-Wilmington North. "If something doesn't happen, we may have to take brash action."
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