Lavaca County approves fourth EMS crew, transfers $220,000 from general fund

Lavaca County Commissioners Court on April 28 approved creation of a fourth county EMS crew and directed a $220,000 transfer from the county general fund to the EMS fund to staff the unit for the remainder of the fiscal year.

The vote came after a detailed briefing from Michael Furr, the county EMS director, who described rising call volumes, repeated "status 0" periods in which no ambulances were available, and operational strains from long interfacility transfers and hospital "wall time." Furr said the new crew would be based at Howlettsville Station and require hiring six employees (three paramedics and three EMTs); he said the county already has the necessary capital equipment and that the $220,000 covers salaries, benefits and payroll taxes through the fiscal year.

"We proposed the addition of one fully staffed ambulance, which will be based out of Howlettsville Station," Furr told the court. He presented call-volume data and training metrics to justify the change: 225 people trained in CPR/first aid this year, 69 trained in 'Stop the Bleed,' 36 in naloxone administration, and projected total 2025 calls of about 2,400–2,500. He said interfacility transfers are expected to increase by 150–200 in 2025 (to roughly 450–500 transfers).

Why it matters: Commissioners said the county has repeatedly experienced times with no ambulances available to answer 9-1-1 calls. Precinct commissioners and the county judge framed the new crew as a near-term solution to reduce out-of-service times and improve emergency coverage while the county plans longer-term facility upgrades.

Discussion and supporting detail

Furr described local and regional mutual-aid deployments, including a recent Emergency Medical Task Force (EMTF) deployment in South Texas where a Lavaca County ambulance and crew spent about two to three weeks responding to calls in Cameron County after flood damage disabled local ambulances. He said EMTF deployments produced both operational experience and reimbursement: the state pays personnel backfill and equipment hourly rates, and he estimated the county received about $150,000 in reimbursements over the past year from EMTF deployments (timing depends on state review and paperwork).

Furr also reported three retired ambulances sold on a federal auction platform for roughly $30,000 each and said that increased local training needs — including clinical rotations and paramedic capstone shifts — have strained available overnight housing in stations. He told the court the average time an ambulance is assigned to a call this year is about "an hour and 7 minutes," with longer trips and hospital delays sometimes keeping units out of service for many hours.

Commission reaction and vote

Commissioners said the trend of repeated status-0 events was unacceptable. After discussion about timing and funding, the court voted to implement the additional crew "effective immediately," authorizing the auditor to transfer $220,000 from the county general fund (fund 01) to the EMS fund (fund 01/21) to fund hiring and operations through the end of the fiscal year.

Motion details: Motion made by Commissioner, Precinct 2; seconded by Commissioner, Precinct 1. The court called for voice votes; all present voted in favor and the motion passed.

What remains to implement

Furr said the department has ambulances and capital gear on hand and needs only personnel; he expects to hire three paramedics and three EMTs. Commissioners discussed the station housing constraints and longer-term facility needs — including possible upgrades to Medic 1 Station and a future new station in Shiner — and directed EMS leadership discretion over exact staffing start dates and staging of the new crew.

Ending

The court approved the immediate transfer and creation of the fourth crew to reduce status-0 occurrences and address rising call volume. Commissioners said next steps will include hiring and short-term scheduling adjustments while the court considers longer-term facility investments and training/housing needs.