COEUR d’ALENE — The cost of providing medical care to people who are held in the Kootenai County jail is rising, according to the sheriff’s office.

The Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office has requested $3.8 million to pay for jail medical and mental health care in fiscal year 2026, an increase of about 4.5% over the prior year. 

Capt. Jeremy Hyle said providing medical care is becoming more expensive due to “skyrocketing” medication costs and due to an increasing need for hospital care. 

“We’re seeing more inmates needing to be sent to the hospital because they’re in worse health than our contractors can provide care for,” he said. 

Longer stays in jail also contribute to rising costs, Hyle said. 

Most of the people who are incarcerated in Kootenai County are facing felony charges, he said, and those individuals tend to stay in jail longer than those facing misdemeanor charges, increasing the likelihood that they will need medical care at some point. 

Costs for medical services have been going up since 2024. 

In 2021, the sheriff’s office entered a five-year contract with VitalCore to provide medical care in the Kootenai County jail. The contract was for $2.4 million in 2023. 

Last spring, according to the sheriff’s office, VitalCore informed the agency that it had undercharged for contracted services and that the contracted rate would increase for fiscal year 2025. 

The sheriff’s office now contracts with WellPath for jail medical care. 

Hyle emphasized the importance of the Kootenai County jail providing adequate medical resources for inmates. 

“We’re obligated to provide medical care,” he said. “It’s a constitutional right.”