By Sarah Nelson
Star Tribune
MINNEAPOLIS — A measure that would require jails across Minnesota to provide incarcerated people their medications prescribed before they were in custody sailed ahead in the 2025 legislative session.
But before it could go into effect, the new law got caught up in the courts when the Minnesota Sheriffs’ Association and Advanced Correctional Healthcare , a company that contracts with jails nationwide, sued the state’s Department of Corrections to block its enforcement.
The suit was mired in the courts for months with back-and-forth rulings that paused — then resumed — its implementation. Jail medical staff said the law robs them of their professional discretion and agency and asked the court to stop its enforcement, while advocates countered by emphasizing the importance of inmates having continuity in their medications, particularly when it comes to mental health care.
An amended version of the law was passed this year and is set to go into effect Aug. 1 . But the road to get there was long:
The Larry R. Hill Medical Reform Act was introduced with noble intentions. In 2023, Larry Ramone Hill , 36, was found dead in the Hennepin County jail after not receiving his prescribed medications. The legislation sought to ensure inmates can have continuity in their care.
But critics said they quickly found themselves facing a medical and legal nightmare.
In an affidavit filed to the court, a medical staffer within Minnesota jails argued that “blindly administering medications” with no regard to the inmate’s current condition could result in serious harm or death. She gave an example of detainees who are prescribed Ativan or Suboxone but are brought to jail under the influence of drugs or alcohol — making their medication perilous to take at the time.
The law, staff argued, forced medical staff to make a difficult choice: Give the medication at risk of harming the patient, or refuse and violate state law.
“We must be able to do the right thing for the patient at the time,” wrote Dr. Jamie Hammerbeck, who works in Minnesota jails.
The Sheriffs’ Association said the law also exposed sheriffs to liability if a patient is harmed or dies after taking their previously prescribed medications.
Advocates for the law noted that it includes exceptions, including if an incarcerated person says in writing that they no longer wanted to take the prescribed medication or if a medical staffer contacts the prescribing doctor who determines the medication is no longer necessary.
“Those exemptions in statute give jail staff plenty of flexibility around the language, so that they’re not held liable if they do provide that medication,” said Marcus Schmit, executive director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness Minnesota.
The lawsuit eventually made its way up to the Minnesota Court of Appeals, which recently ruled that the Sheriffs’ Association and Advanced Correctional Healthcare were not successful in their argument for an injunction to prevent the law from being enacted as the suit progressed.
“A ‘series of hypotheticals’ would have to occur before [the new law] would require appellants to administer medication against sound medical judgement and state and federal law,” the court concluded.
Meanwhile, the Sheriffs’ Association said amending the law to correct their concerns was the group’s top priority last legislative session.
Attorney Rick Hodsdon said the association and lawmakers tried to come up with a solution and were ultimately able to address their biggest concerns.
The changes include stripping requirements that patients give written consent to change their prescription and that jail staff must consult outside providers before making the change. The new law asks licensed health care staffers to make reasonable efforts to consult with outside providers.
“It went an extremely long way to restore the professional discretion of jail medical providers,” Hodsdon said.
The amended law goes into effect Aug. 1 , Hodson said.
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