By Chris Reidy, Globe Staff

The Federal Bureau of Prisons has awarded the University of Massachusetts Medical School a contract to manage comprehensive medical services to about 4,900 inmates at the Federal Medical Center located in Butner, N.C., UMass Medical School said.

The agreement, valued at $24.7 million for the first year, represents its largest federal correctional health contract to date, the Worcester-based school said.

The contract also has options for four additional years that could increase the overall award to more than $136 million through 2016, the school said

The school considers itself a leader in correctional health; it has also provided comprehensive health services for the past 12 years at the Federal Bureau of Prisons medical facility in Devens. The school said it also has a long track record of providing care at 17 state-run prisons in Massachusetts, serving the health needs of 11,500 inmates.

Originally posted here:

UMass Medical School to manage health care at federal prison in North Carolina