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Council approves updated EMS MOU with Williams County and Bridal Fire to continue collaborative coverage
Summary
Council voted to approve Ordinance 2 20 26 authorizing an updated MOU with Williams County to provide collaborative EMS coverage with Bridal Fire; the fire chief described higher call volumes and low reimbursement rates that support continuing the MOU while the city gathers more billing data.
The Bryan City Council on Jan. 5 approved Ordinance 2 20 26, authorizing the mayor to enter an updated memorandum of understanding with the Williams County Board of Commissioners to continue collaborative emergency-medical services between Williams County EMS and the Bridal Fire Department.
Bridal’s fire chief (the meeting transcript identifies the speaker as the chief) said the updated MOU modifies availability windows and expands non-emergency transport to reduce pressure on the county system. The chief said the arrangement uses existing staff and equipment, adds minimal direct city cost (chiefly diesel and consumables), and includes a five-year buyback clause for equipment purchased for the program.
The chief gave several billing and utilization figures: he said the department tracked 1,232 EMS calls in 2025 and that, in a reviewed three-month sample from May–July, roughly 20 calls produced reimbursable transports with about nine paid as of an October report. He said typical billings for a basic call are about $1,015 but that sample payments from Medicare/Medicaid were substantially lower (examples cited included payments of $254 and $329), meaning providers in the arrangement often receive only about 20–30% of billed amounts. Council members asked for additional data and staff explained the purpose of extending the MOU for six months to gather fuller collection information before adjusting the revenue-share (10%) in the agreement.
A motion to approve the ordinance was made, seconded and approved by the council.
Council members thanked the chief and other participants and emphasized the public-safety rationale for continuing a collaborative EMS arrangement while the city and county track collections and operational impacts.
