TRAVIS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — Local hospital district Central Health announced Tuesday it would begin providing Travis County Jail inmates with virtual heath visits, a move it said would help the county’s jail population access medical care while saving taxpayer funding.
In its release, Central Health said that the visits reduce reliance on transportation of inmates to medical facilities.
“Everyone in our community deserves access to quality health care,” said Travis County Judge Andy Brown in the release. “This new virtual care program is a smart, compassionate solution that improves patient outcomes while saving taxpayer dollars. It reflects the kind of innovation and collaboration we need to build a healthier and more equitable Travis County.”
While the jail has on-location medical staff, it often lacks specialty care, Central Health said. If an inmate requires specialized services, jail staff will send a request to Central Health staff, who will determine if the medical condition requires an in-person or virtual visit.
The inmate will be accompanied by the jail’s medical staff during the virtual appointments, according to Central Health. Central Health Virtual Care Program Manager Daja Elhariri said in the release that the “quality of care remains the same” as in-person visits.
“We’ve simply transitioned the experience to a fully virtual format to ensure coordinated support and accessibility. We’re truly optimistic about the positive impact this could have on patient care,” Elhariri said.
The release said that Central Health provides inmates with specialty care for the following conditions: Podiatry, supportive and pallative care, infectious disease, cardiology, nephrology, rheumatology and endocrinology. It said that more specialty care services will become available in the future.
Currently, Central Health is “focused on reducing wait times” for all county residents — inmates included.
“When you think about an incredibly vulnerable population with so many barriers to care, it’s exciting to work in an organization that see’s there’s a need and fills it,” said Amber Hillanbrand, Central Health’s justice-involved health senior operations manager. “Providing high-quality care to people who need it most, in one of the hardest situations, is exactly what Central Health is here to do.”
KXAN Investigates has followed the backlog of jail requests for state hospital beds since 2019. From 2018 to February 2025, at least 54 people have died while on that waitlist.
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