Jails forwarded inmates to TDCJ without mentioning dialysis needs

On April 19, Texas Commission on Jail Standards executive director Brandon Wood sent a memo to all Texas Sheriffs and jail administrators (pdf) advising them that:

In the past week, Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) officials have notified us that two dialysis inmates from separate counties were sent to TDCJ facilities without prior notification. As a result, one inmate had to be immediately hospitalized in a private hospital because TDCJ was not prepared for the inmate and did not have an available dialysis unit.

The memo included a reminder that under the law and TCJS regulations counties have a "duty and responsibility to notify and coordinate the care of inmates with serious medical or mental impairments with receiving facilities." It doesn't say which were the offending counties.

Mentioning, "Hey, you might want to have a machine ready," before sending somebody who needs dialysis to prison seems like pretty basic stuff. And given that there's a formal process in place, such documentation should be part of their regular "pen packet" so there's really no excuse. Two in a week from different counties could be a fluke or it could also be a red flag, so Wood was right to take the opportunity to issue the reminder.