Beltrami Co. Sheriff Concerned with New Law on Inmate Prescription Meds

A new law that will go into effect on August 1st requires Minnesota jails to fill and administer medication that was prescribed to inmates outside of their incarceration. After seeking ways to improve the health care system in jails throughout the state, Gov. Tim Walz signed a public safety bill that includes the legislation.

This new law, however, is sparking controversy with some sheriffs’ departments throughout the state.

“This is just another example of the state’s unfunded mandate to local governments,” said Beltrami County Sheriff Jason Riggs. “In Beltrami County, obviously, we use taxpayer dollars to run the jail, and those costs are going to exacerbate our medical budget.”

Currently, Beltrami County spends just under a million dollars a year on medical providers. $80,000 to $100,000 dollars from that goes to prescription medication for the inmates inside the jail. Sheriff Riggs worries this law may add unneeded costs to the jail’s budget.

“If an inmate comes in and they’re on blood pressure medications, heart control, that kind of stuff, those are the kinds of things that we already provide,” Riggs said. “It’s some of the ancillary medications that are not necessarily immediate needed.”

This legislation includes exceptions if the inmate states in writing that they do not want to take the prescribed medication, or the doctor who originally prescribed the medication to the inmate determines it is no longer needed. Sheriff Riggs claims this is the most challenging aspect of the new law.

“Almost 60% of our population in the jail are people from not in our area,” stated Riggs. “So are they receiving care through Fargo, Duluth, the Twin Cities? Yeah, it’s great when it’s local here and we’re dealing with Sanford [Health], but when you’re talking about having to contact other medical providers outside of the area, that can get tricky.”

Sheriff Riggs also says he has concerns over inmates who may not have taken their prescribed medication for some time, and the effects it may have once the individual goes back on the medication once they are incarcerated.

“A lot of the inmates that come into custody are under the influence of narcotics, methamphetamines, fentanyl, severe alcohol poisoning. We have detox issues,” he added. “Maybe the inmate hasn’t taken their prescription drugs regularly. We have no way of knowing their past history [with] that, and now they come into the jail and they have to live off of oxygen or water. What does that mean when we put them back on something? Are they going to be able to handle that medication still?”

The Minnesota Sheriffs’ Association has sued the state over this new law, citing it could have “deadly consequences” to those incarcerated. There is now a temporary injunction in response to the lawsuit, and the suspended statute will now go into effect on August 1st pending a hearing on July 25th. Beltrami County is not a part of that lawsuit.