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Grand Rapids Fire launches six‑month EMS pilot with Corwell Health to target frequent 911 callers
Summary
Grand Rapids Fire Department announced a six‑month pilot with Corwell Health to reduce repeat 911 calls. The city will reallocate an EMS captain and an existing vehicle for early January launch; Corwell will provide additional personnel support. Exact cost figures were not specified.
The Grand Rapids Fire Department announced a six‑month pilot to address frequent 911 callers and ease emergency‑department readmissions.
Fire department leadership said the city receives about 17,000 EMS calls a year within Grand Rapids and that roughly 14% of those involve repeat 911 callers; 32 people had 10 or more incidents in a year, and one individual engaged the EMS system 114 times. The department framed the pilot as a way to get residents the right care without sending a full emergency apparatus when not needed.
The pilot — described in the presentation as the Medical Priority and Wellness Response ("Empower") program — will pair Grand Rapids Fire personnel with staff from Corwell Health West Michigan. Corwell’s Kaylee Peterson, senior director for Healthier Communities, said Corwell is investing personnel and expertise to help navigate wraparound services such as transportation, food access and medication support.
City staff said the pilot will rely on reallocated resources rather than new hires: an EMS captain was reassigned to the program and the department repurposed an existing battalion vehicle as the program car. The city will cross‑train personnel with Corwell (including ER rotations and fire‑truck ride‑alongs), conduct site visits to established programs elsewhere and start enrolling participants early in January. The presentation said Corwell bore some program costs; the city did not provide a dollar amount during the briefing.
Fire leadership emphasized the city’s existing "hot team" response will continue alongside the pilot. Officials said they will track data and metrics during the six‑month trial and return to the commission with results and recommendations on whether to continue or expand the program.
Next steps: staff said early‑January site visits and participant enrollment are planned; commissioners asked for historical call‑volume breakdowns to support trend analysis and the department offered to provide about 10 years of accessible data on request.
