Barnesville Ambulance asks Clay County for major budget increase as service switches from volunteers to paid crews

Avril Whiteford, director of Barnesville Ambulance, asked the Clay County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday to increase county funding to help the volunteer‑run service that has shifted to paid staffing and is running operating deficits. Whiteford told the board Barnesville Ambulance covers about 442 square miles in southern Clay County and a small portion of Wilkin County, responds roughly 350–400 times a year and staffed in 2024 with 2 EMRs, 19 EMTs, 11 paramedics and four peer‑support members. She said the service has moved this year away from the longstanding $1‑per‑hour volunteer model toward paid part‑time employees and that change — plus higher operating costs and decreased volunteer availability — has driven larger budget needs. “People don’t have the time, and they don’t have the money to give those resources anymore,” Whiteford said, describing the shift to paid staffing and the revenue measures the ambulance service uses — community‑education classes, event standbys and transfers — to supplement tax support. Whiteford reviewed the service’s 2024 finances: the ambulance billed $654,314 for services and collected about $248,075.21; the service wrote off roughly $330,164.34 in Medicare/Medicaid and insurance discounts and sent about $40,988.63 to collections, she said. Of roughly 411 calls in the year cited, Whiteford said about 277 resulted in hospital transport; the service earns more from interfacility transfers than from routine calls. Whiteford asked the county to restore a larger share of tax support after a major increase in city levy support last year moved the local funding mix. She asked the county to consider returning to a larger share of support (townships also agreed to raise their contributions at recent meetings, she said), and requested an answer by the end of September so her service can finalize its 2026 budget. Commissioners pressed on several points. Some asked whether Sanford Ambulance had interest in taking over the service area; Whiteford said Sanford declined because of the added cost and current staffing challenges. Commissioners also questioned the rapid shift to mostly paid staff and contrasted Barnesville’s staffing with volunteer rescue squads in other towns; Whiteford said rescue squads do not regularly staff ambulance transports and that volunteer availability varies widely among agencies. Several commissioners said they appreciated the service and recognized its importance — especially for cardiac arrest responses, Whiteford said — but also said the current county budget climate makes a large, immediate increase difficult. Commissioner comments referenced other shared funding priorities such as the regional dispatch center, and the board asked Whiteford to provide any additional documentation and to stay available while the county finalizes preliminary levy figures in September. Whiteford said she will submit further information about her application for state funding and for the recently enacted state programs that may provide assistance for operating deficits; she called her $300,000 figure a ‘‘dream’’ request and said any amount the county could provide would help. The board did not vote on the request at Tuesday’s meeting and took the proposal under submission for consideration during the 2026 preliminary levy process.