Tamarac staff recommend continued contract with Digitech for EMS billing; city also reviewing outstanding transport debt

TAMARAC, Fla. — Fire department leaders briefed the commission on a proposed contract with Digitech to continue ambulance billing and related services, and on the city’s stock of unpaid patient-transport charges.

Deputy Fire Chief Jonathan Fraser told commissioners the proposed engagement would be a three-year contract with two one-year renewal options (a potential total of five years) for ambulance billing services. Fraser said Digitech has worked with the city for about 20 years and that the vendor’s fee structure in the presentation was a 4% billing fee plus a separate $1,000 monthly processing fee. He said Digitech may not charge the 4% fee on Medicaid claims and that the $1,000 monthly charge functions as a processing fee for those claims.

Fraser showed historical revenue figures: collections reported for recent years and an anticipated projected return for 2025 of about $3,000,012. He said Digitech began using a software product called Ambulance Commander in February 2024 and that the department saw improved collections and tracking after the software rollout.

Outstanding debt: Fraser told the commission that since 2011 the city has more than $13 million in unpaid ambulance-transport bills on the books; limiting collections to the five-year statute of limitations referenced in the presentation would reduce the collectible balance to about $5.684 million (amount shown for the period since 2019). Fraser cautioned that many unpaid accounts reflect deceased patients, residents who moved away or patients in long-term care, and that a portion of the outstanding balance will be unrecoverable.

Third-party collection options: Fraser said Digitech could not both bill and act as a third-party purchaser of debt because of a conflict of interest. He presented two collection scenarios the city might consider: selling debt to debt buyers (who, staff said, typically purchase receivables for 1%–14% of face value) or contracting with collection firms that charge a recovery fee (staff cited ranges of 20%–50% of recovered value). Staff said choosing to pursue these options would be an administrative decision and would return to the commission for direction if pursued.

Why it matters: EMS transport revenue represents a recurring revenue source for the city’s emergency services. The proposed contract and collection approach influence net revenue and billing workload, and could affect how the city handles long-standing unpaid transport charges.

Questions and next steps: Commissioners and staff discussed separating billing services (the Digitech contract) from potential future third-party collection contracts. Staff said the Digitech contract would be procured via piggyback on an existing contract (use of another agency’s procurement) and that the item will be on the commission’s Wednesday agenda for selection and award. No formal vote occurred during the workshop.

Direct quotes: "We've negotiated one of the lowest fees in the county," Deputy Fire Chief Jonathan Fraser said of Tamarac's current Digitech fee arrangement.

Status: Staff recommended the commission review and, if the commission is satisfied, approve the billing-services contract at the upcoming meeting; the handling of older outstanding balances would be discussed separately.