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Palmview OKs ambulance service agreement with Mission Hospital for nonemergency transfers
Summary
The council approved a memorandum of understanding with Mission Hospital under which Palmview’s EMS may provide nonemergency patient transfers when available; the hospital will cover Medicare/Medicaid-based fees for those transfers, creating a new revenue stream.
The Palmview City Council approved a memorandum of understanding with Mission Hospital that allows the city’s Fire/EMS to provide ambulance transportation for hospital discharges and nonemergency transfers when units are available.
City staff and the fire chief explained the MOU covers nonemergency transfers from Mission Hospital and uses Medicare/Medicaid rate schedules for payments; Mission Hospital will pay the city directly for covered transfers. Staff said the hospital will present the agreement to its board and that service availability is voluntary — the city will dispatch for these transfers only if units are available.
Chiefs and staff said the arrangement creates a guaranteed revenue stream when units are dispatched for scheduled, nonemergency transfers; the hospital will handle collection from insurers. The council approved the MOU by motion and voice vote; staff estimated the agreement could begin after hospital board approval, possibly by summer.
Council members asked for follow-up reporting on call volumes and utilization so the city can monitor how many transfers are performed and how the revenue stream grows. The agreement does not obligate the city to cover emergency transfers beyond current mutual-aid arrangements; staff said a second MOU may follow later that would address emergency transports once facilities and contracts are further developed.
