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Richland County board approves new ambulance contract approach, sets $2.25-per-dispatch charge and $2,500 minimum for municipalities
Summary
After months of committee discussion, the board amended and approved measures to shift the ambulance agreement from a memorandum to a contract, set a rate of $2.25 per ambulance dispatch with a $2,500 minimum municipal payment, and directed staff to produce a contract for municipalities to accept by Nov. 1.
The Richland County Board of Supervisors voted on Sept. 16 to replace the standing memorandum governing county ambulance services with a contract-based arrangement and to require municipalities to pay a per-dispatch charge and a minimum annual amount.
Under the amendment the board approved, each municipality will pay $2.25 for each time an ambulance request is made and an ambulance is dispatched; municipalities will also pay a minimum of $2,500. Board members amended the agreement language during the meeting to specify that the fee applies when an ambulance is dispatched rather than only when a person is transported.
The action followed extended discussion about the sustainability of the county-operated ambulance service, which officials and staff said has been operating under rates that have not kept pace with rising costs. County staff told the board the county's prior per-call charge structure has not covered vehicle replacement, facility repairs (including a roof needing work at the ambulance building) and rising supply and labor costs. The administrator and health staff said the proposal is intended to create a budget that can sustain the service without repeated draws on the county general fund.
Several townships and supervisors raised concerns about the size of increases for small rural municipalities. Board members agreed to change the implementing document from a memorandum to a contract and directed staff to present a contract to municipalities with a target for municipalities to respond by Nov. 1 so they can finalize municipal budgets. Supervisors also asked staff to provide more detailed call-volume data to municipalities to justify the calculations and noted Pine Valley call accounting needed clarification; staff said they had been unable to find documentation that Pine Valley calls were billed in a different manner in the past.
The board also approved a minor amendment clarifying that the per-dispatch charge would apply when a request resulted in a dispatch (not just when a patient is picked up). The board's legal advisor noted a contract would allow more robust indemnity and force-majeure language than a memorandum.
Ending: The board adopted the contract approach and rate structure as amended and asked staff and county counsel to draft a formal contract for municipalities to consider before the board meets again.
