Crossville fire chief and medical leaders outline plan for city-run EMS; council schedules vote

Crossville — Fire Chief South, medical leaders and volunteer grant-writer Anna Hamilton presented a multi‑phase plan to establish a Crossville city EMS transport program and asked the City Council to consider authorizing the initiative and related grant-seeking this month.

The plan, presented at the city work session, calls for an initial implementation year with one used ambulance purchase, three new advanced life‑support (ALS) ambulances, and the recruitment of 18 new staff (nine advanced emergency medical technicians and nine paramedics). Chief South said the first-year implementation cost would be about $3,272,000 and annual operating costs thereafter would likely be about $2.6–3.0 million. He estimated transport revenue in an initial year could range around $2.25 million but stressed revenue projections and county responses were uncertain.

Why this matters: Council members asked for detailed costs, operational steps and the program’s effect on county EMS resources. The proposal would shift some EMS transport responsibilities now handled by Cumberland County to a city-run service, changing revenue and deployment patterns and potentially affecting county ambulance placement. Chief South said a city program would operate three ALS units around the clock and emphasized cross‑training firefighters to rotate on EMS and fire apparatus to limit burnout.

Chief South said the program is planned in three phases: a preparation/certification phase beginning immediately, a personnel hiring and training phase in January 2026, and full implementation as early as mid‑2026, contingent on council direction and regulatory approvals. “We do plan to operate and staff 3, advanced life supporting initiatives in the city of Crossville 24 hours a day, 365 days a year,” Chief South said during the presentation.

The presentation outlined regulatory steps required to begin transport: initial certification with the Tennessee Department of Health as an ambulance service at basic life support (BLS) level, subsequent filings with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Medicare, and then the move to advanced life support. Chief South said a used ambulance for certification was estimated at about $120,000 and three new units at roughly $1,300,000 total. He also described proposed organizational changes including promotions to a battalion chief model and internal cross‑training for fire and EMS duties.

Medical professionals and community advocates spoke in support of improved EMS response. Dr. Tom Allingham, medical director of critical care medicine at Cumberland Medical Center, told the council that “50% of the calls apparently come from within the city limits” and argued that closer EMS units would better support the hospital’s recently certified stroke and STEMI programs by reducing time to definitive care.

Councilman Fox (identified in the meeting as Dr. Fox) described external funding opportunities and asked for council approval to pursue some philanthropic grants. He said he had “made an initial inquiry with the Gary Sinise Foundation” and described it as a potential source of grant funding that “is not a matching, just all grant.” The council heard from Anna Hamilton, a self‑employed grant writer, who reviewed philanthropic and foundation opportunities and offered to assist: “I am self employed,” she said, adding she would accept $65 an hour for grant‑writing work if the council chose to contract assistance.

The chief addressed billing and collection. He said AME Medical Billing had indicated it would handle ambulance transport collections and could also add other billing tasks (for example automobile insurance collections) at no additional cost if the city used transport billing as a base. Chief South said starting with transport billing would create a revenue stream separate from general city taxes.

Several council members asked how county EMS would respond if the city implements transport. Chief South said he had spoken with county officials and commissioners and invited county leaders to meetings, but he could not predict county operational decisions; he warned the county might reduce or redeploy ambulances if the city begins providing the same service area. The chief also noted the county reports operating deficits for its EMS service; he presented the city’s budget and revenue estimates while stressing the projections’ uncertainty.

At the end of the discussion, a council member asked to place the measure on the formal agenda for a council vote next Tuesday. The mayor confirmed the item would be added.

What’s next: The council scheduled the EMS proposal for a vote at its next regular meeting. If the council approves the motion to proceed, staff and the fire department said they would begin the certification and procurement steps outlined.