Medical & Mental Health in Montana (MT DOC)
How health care works in Montana prisons — in-house DOC Clinical Services, some contracted specialty care, mental-health services, and the grievance process.
Health care in Montana prisons
Unlike many states that hire a private prison-health company, Montana has historically delivered care in-house through DOC Clinical Services, the department’s health-care staff. It provides medical, dental, and mental-health care across Montana DOC facilities. The department contracts for some specialty services — for example, telepsychiatry and medication-assisted treatment — but there is no single named statewide private medical contractor.
Routine care begins at each prison’s on-site clinic, generally through a sick-call request submitted to the facility’s medical staff. Confirm the current sick-call procedure, any charges or co-pay, and any exemptions with the facility’s health services unit, because details change.
Care arrangements can differ at the contract facilities that hold Montana inmates. Confirm how medical care, sick call, and specialty referrals work at the specific facility where a person is held.
Mental-health and specialty care
Routine and lower-acuity care is delivered at each prison’s on-site clinic. Mental-health and substance-use services are provided as part of DOC Clinical Services, ranging from clinic-based care at individual prisons to contracted specialty services such as telepsychiatry and medication-assisted treatment.
Higher-acuity and specialty care that cannot be provided on-site is arranged through outside providers or contracted services. Confirm the current arrangement, including how a referral to a specialist or an outside provider is requested, with the facility’s health services unit.
The grievance process
A health or treatment concern that cannot be resolved with the facility’s medical staff can be raised through the Montana DOC grievance process, the department’s formal procedure for inmate complaints. The procedure has internal review steps within the prison and the department.
Montana does not publish a separate independent corrections ombudsman for prison health complaints. The grievance process is the route for review of a health or treatment concern. Confirm the current grievance steps and deadlines with the facility’s medical staff.
Verify Before Acting
Sources
This page is compiled from the following publicly available sources. Policies change without notice — confirm current details with the facility before relying on them.