A. It shall be the responsibility of the Department of Corrections to provide such medical and surgical inpatient and outpatient care as may be required by inmates of the Department of Corrections. The Department may refer to the Oklahoma University Medical Center, and the Oklahoma University Medical Center shall accept, those inmates who need services, as determined by the Department of Corrections to be beyond the professional capabilities of the Department of Corrections.

B. The Department of Corrections may also contract with providers of general inpatient hospital services. Any such provider shall be a hospital as defined in Section 1-701 of Title 63 of the Oklahoma Statutes. The Department of Corrections may also contract with physicians and other providers of inpatient and outpatient health care services, equipment and health care related products as may be necessary for the delivery of health care which is beyond the professional capabilities of the Department of Corrections.

C. When the Department of Corrections determines the medical necessity for urgent hospitalization of an inmate, an appropriate inpatient hospital in close proximity to the correctional facility shall be used for emergency care and stabilization. The Department of Corrections is authorized to develop a network of inpatient hospitals, physicians and other inpatient and outpatient medical providers that are capable of providing necessary health care services, equipment and other health care related products. Those hospitals, physicians and other inpatient and outpatient providers of health care services and products that are in the network established by the Department of Corrections in conjunction with the Oklahoma State and Education Employees Group Insurance Board shall be reimbursed according to the current fee schedule established for that network. Hospitals and inpatient and outpatient providers that are out-of-network shall be reimbursed according to the current Oklahoma Medicaid fee schedule.

D. The Department of Corrections shall be responsible for transporting to, from, and between hospitals and for providing such physical security of inmate consumers as may be required beyond that security normal to hospital operation. The Department of Corrections shall immediately remove from the hospital those inmate consumers when discharged by the hospital.

E. The hospital services provided by the Oklahoma University Medical Center shall be without cost to the Department of Corrections.

Added by Laws 2002, c. 3, § 21, emerg. eff. Feb. 15, 2002. Amended by Laws 2002, c. 384, § 2, emerg. eff. June 4, 2002; Laws 2003, c. 46, § 27, emerg. eff. April 8, 2003; Laws 2005, c. 150, § 23, emerg. eff. May 9, 2005; Laws 2007, c. 337, § 1, emerg. eff. June 4, 2007. Renumbered from Title 43A, § 3-701a by Laws 2007, c. 337, § 2, emerg. eff. June 4, 2007. Amended by Laws 2011, c. 181, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 2011.