Travis County approves drawing DWI suspects’ blood at jail
May 14th, 2010 | 
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Blood could soon be drawn at Central Booking at the Travis County Jail, after county commissioners’ 4-0 vote Tuesday approving changes to an agreement between Travis County and the City of Austin.
The Austin City Council is expected to consider the agreement changes later this month.
A law went into effect last year that expanded the circumstances requiring blood or breath tests from DWI suspects. They now include incidents in which victims are injured and transported for medical care and the presence of a child passenger in the suspect’s vehicle. The Travis County sheriff’s office and Austin police estimate that an additional 300 to 400 blood draws will be required each year on top of the 400 to 500 blood draws that have been taken at the request of local law enforcement.
Two primary reasons for having a phlebotomist in Central Booking are to improve officer and public safety and to avoid the costs of blood draws at University Medical Center Brackenridge.
At Brackenridge, for an average 910 blood draws, phlebotomy services are estimated to cost $329,420 a year, or $362 per blood draw, a cost that includes a $275 medical exam.
Though blood draws are taken at jails in Bexar, Dallas and Williamson counties, they are taken at hospitals in Harris and Tarrant counties.
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Texas Accident Victim Guide
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