Charleston Co. Council selects new medical provider for Al Cannon Detention Center

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD) – Charleston County Council voted to officially select VitalCore Health Strategies as the Al Cannon Detention Center’s new medical provider, but Charleston County Sheriff Kristin Graziano is not pleased by the decision.

An evaluation committee made up of four detention center staff members and one Charleston County Council member recommended VitalCore Health Strategies, a medical provider Graziano has recently voiced apprehension about.

Following a brief discussion on how the evaluation process worked, council voted. The vote for VitalCore to become the detention center’s new medical provider passed unanimously.

Sheriff Graziano left the meeting soon after and was visibly upset.

“I’m really disappointed because if you look at the facts of this case,” Graziano said, “and this whole process, we asked for this process to start a long time ago.”

Graziano says that process was supposed to begin around this time two years ago, but didn’t actually start until October 2021. She says the detention center was in talks an in-state medical provider that she felt would best fit their needs, but that was soon denied.

“They knew full well,” Graziano said, “not the council, but county staff knew full well who we were engaged with and who we wanted invited to apply for that, yet they did not invite that other provider.”

One of the sheriff’s main concerns is that the new medical service may struggle to provide the necessary care for inmates battling mental illness, which she says is prevalent in her facility.

“I’m forced now to rely on my staff to be the eyes and ears for these folks,” Graziano said, “and it’s just very frustrating that they won’t listen to us. We’ve been very clear about what our needs are. We are the subject matter experts.”

Despite her frustration, Sheriff Graziano says she will work with VitalCore, but she will also be sure to hold them accountable.