The city of Allentown’s emergency medical services bureau told council members it is seeing sustained increases in call volume and is seeking one ambulance remount in the proposed 2026 budget.

The EMS presenter, identified in the public record as an EMS staff member with the Allentown Fire Department, said the agency staffs 41 full‑time paramedics, three full‑time civilian administrative staff and five supervisory staff. “As a primary EMS provider for the city of Allentown under the division of the fire department, we staff 41 full time paramedics, 3 full time admin staff that are, civilian employees. And out of those 41 paramedics, 5 are supervisory staff,” the presenter said (00:00:16).

Why it matters: The bureau reported a substantial growth in demand and revenue that it said affects equipment, supplies and fleet needs. The presenter said the service expects to handle “somewhere in the area of 21,000 calls for service” for 2025 and that this figure represents a 33% increase since 2016. The presenter also reported projected 2025 revenue of about $7,100,000, a 31% increase since 2022, and said the bureau had seen “0%” staff growth since 2022 (00:00:47).

Details: The presenter said the agency runs five ambulances on shift during peak times (noted in the presentation as “10 to 10PM”) and three during non‑peak times, and recommended staffing levels of six ambulances during peak times and four during non‑peak times using a Chicago Fire Department staffing methodology as a reference. “Based on the size of our city and our call volume using the same method that the Chicago Fire Department uses for staffing EMS agencies, we would recommend 6 during peak times and 4 during non peak times,” the presenter said (00:01:29).

Fleet request: The presenter explained that rather than buy a brand‑new ambulance the bureau requests a remount in 2026 to extend the service life of existing modules. He described remounting as sending the ambulance module to a company to be stripped, rewired and rebuilt on a new chassis and said the bureau expects a remounted unit to cost roughly $221,000. “So what we're doing for the next 8 ambulances is remounting existing fleets… you're essentially getting a new ambulance for roughly half the cost,” the presenter said (00:04:20).

Program and training: The EMS presenter said the bureau is among the first non‑hospital EMS agencies in Pennsylvania to carry whole blood; the whole‑blood program was described as in the final stage of approval and awaiting Munis contract processing. The presenter also said the training bureau, which shares the EMS budget, trains approximately 500 providers annually (00:02:24).

Council questions and gaps: Council members asked for precise cost breakdowns for new and remounted ambulances, and about a salary discrepancy cited for a chief position; the presenter deferred on some figures. In response to a question about the Chicago staffing model, the presenter said the model is a published population‑based reference the bureau used for the recommended ambulance counts (00:09:18). On staffing, the presenter said retirements will be filled primarily from the part‑time pool and that the bureau is fully staffed at the authorized 41 full‑time positions at present (00:11:05).

What’s next: The agency asked that the requested remount not be cut from the 2026 fleet budget so the bureau can maintain momentum toward replacing one ambulance per year. The presenter emphasized rising call volumes tied to city growth and large‑scale events as the driver for the request (00:11:05).

Ending: The bureau provided financial tables back to 2022 and earlier and offered to answer additional council questions after the presentation.