Correctional Health Services requested $8 million in nonlapsing authority over three years to implement a utilization management program intended to curb outside medical and pharmaceutical costs for people in state custody, presenters told the Social Services Appropriations Subcommittee on Jan. 30.

The request, CHS leaders said, would help the new agency stand up prior authorization, case management and other utilization-management tools and reorganize operations after CHS transferred from corrections to the Department of Health and Human Services in July 2023. The department asked that $250,000 be included for the program’s continuation after initial implementation.

CHS executives framed the budget ask in the context of a medically complex and dispersed prison population. "I'm Doctor Stacy Bank. I'm the new Executive Medical Director for the Department of Health and Human Services and I oversee Correctional Health Services," said Dr. Stacy Bank. Dr. Mark Wisner, introduced as the director of Correctional Health Services, and Chris Ann Bacon, introduced as director of operations for clinical services, described a system that treats people with multiple, high‑need conditions including substance use disorders, severe mental illness and advanced dental disease.

CHS leaders said personnel services are the largest share of their budget. The presentation listed personnel services at about $29.1 million, roughly 59% of expenditures, with current expenses at about $10.2 million (20%). The agency reported 222 full‑time equivalents in 2024, budgeted 248 that year and budgeted 243 for the coming biennium. CHS also said the system serves hundreds of people at two main state facilities and that about 1,600 individuals under state custody are housed in 22 county jails.

CHS said it has taken steps to control pharmaceutical spending, including joining a multistate purchasing consortium and participating in the federal 340B program; officials reported roughly $1 million in savings in two quarters and projected $2 million annually as participation matures. CHS also described a partnership with PEHP as part of a proposed utilization‑management strategy to reduce outside medical costs.

Senator Luz Escamilla moved to remove a budget reduction (item 29) that would have cut funds for a medical monitoring technology pilot tied to correctional health, arguing the pilot had been delayed by the organizational transition and should be given a chance to operate. "I was a little bit taken aback when I saw this in the budget item," Escamilla said, adding that the pilot could detect early warning signs such as suicidal ideation or uncontrolled diabetes and reduce costly interventions.

The motion to remove the reduction failed on a recorded count. Committee staff read members who voted against restoring the funding as "senator Baldry; Representative Jack; Representative Shivert; Representative Gracious; and Chair Filofia" (negative). The motion was ruled to have "failed in the house, passes in the senate, fails the motion, fails to pass," according to the committee record.

Committee members asked CHS leaders for details and timeframes; CHS emphasized the recentness of the transfer from corrections and the ongoing work to address audit findings and staffing shortages. CHS said it had achieved national accreditation for its Central Utah facility but still faces operational challenges tied to transport, security and specialty care access.

The subcommittee did not take a separate recorded vote on the CHS $8 million implementation request during the portion of the hearing captured in the transcript.

The presentation cited the 1976 U.S. Supreme Court decision Estelle v. Gamble as the constitutional basis for providing health care to incarcerated people and referenced national standards from the National Commission on Correctional Health Care and other professional organizations.

CHS leaders said they would continue to work with PEHP and external partners to define expected savings and to return with more detailed cost‑control plans and metrics if the committee requests additional follow up.