Kossuth County approves EMS equipment maintenance contract and purchase of ACR‑4 child restraints

The Kossuth County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved the county's 2025 preventative maintenance contract for Kossuth County EMS equipment and authorized purchase of ACR‑4 ambulance child restraint systems for every ambulance in the county.

The maintenance contract covers electronic and battery‑powered life‑saving equipment — monitors, ventilators, power loads and the Lucas CPR device — and includes annual recertification and repairs as needed, the EMS representative said. The board was told switching to the contractor used last year reduced costs by nearly half.

Phil, an EMS representative who presented the items to the board, said the maintenance package “recertif[ies] them that they're providing the proper ventilation” and covers “anything that is battery powered or electronic within our ambulances.” He added the program allows in‑year returns or repairs for items that fail between scheduled service cycles.

Separately, Phil described a county project funded by a safety grant and coordinated by the Kossuth County EMS Association to buy ACR‑4 child restraint systems that secure infants and small children to ambulance cots. He said the ACR‑4 system adapts a cot to act like a car seat for patients from newborn up to about 100 pounds and that one demonstrator unit was ordered before placing the full order. The county purchased 14 devices so every ambulance in the county will receive one; Phil said grant proceeds and the EMS Association will cover any portion not funded by the grant.

Both the maintenance contract and the ACR‑4 purchase were approved without recorded opposition. The board recorded both motions as passing unanimously.