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Cottage Grove asks St. Paul Park for $62,339 subsidy as EMS reimbursements fall short
Summary
Cottage Grove officials told the St. Paul Park City Council on June 16 that rising ambulance costs and low Medicare/Medicaid reimbursements have driven their EMS enterprise fund into a multi-year deficit and requested a $62,339 subsidy and a contract with annual 9% increases as a starting point.
Cottage Grove officials told the City of St. Paul Park council on June 16 that the cost of providing ambulance service has outpaced reimbursements from Medicare and Medicaid, leaving Cottage Grove’s EMS enterprise fund in deficit and prompting a request for a local subsidy.
At a council meeting, John Pritchard, fire and EMS chief for the city of Cottage Grove, and Jennifer Levitt, Cottage Grove city administrator, outlined service levels, costs and a proposed subsidy. Cottage Grove asked St. Paul Park to consider a $62,339 payment to help cover the gap between typical billed transport rates and the lower Medicare/Medicaid reimbursement the ambulance service receives, with a proposed contract escalation of 9% annually for 2026 and 2027.
The request matters because Cottage Grove holds the public service area (PSA) and provides ambulance transport for St. Paul Park, Newport and Grey Cloud Island. Pritchard said Cottage Grove sends a paramedic on every response, and noted the department’s response performance to St. Paul…
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