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Levy County approves purchase of eight patient monitors, moves to replace EMS billing vendor
Summary
Commissioners approved purchasing eight replacement patient monitors (quoted at $450,761.16) and voted to terminate the county'9s current EMS-billing contract after repeated performance problems; staff also recommended a second-place bidder, Digitech Computer LLC, for billing and collections.
Levy County commissioners on Tuesday approved a public-safety purchase of eight replacement patient monitors and moved to terminate the county'9s EMS billing and collection contract after staff reported ongoing service problems.
The county'9s public-safety chief told the board the monitors are reaching the end of their usable life and that replacement motherboards are no longer manufactured. "We're requesting the purchase of eight of these because we have eight that are no longer serviceable or obsolete," the chief said, estimating the request at $450,761.16. The chief said some units have been in service more than a decade and the manufacturer no longer supports the platform.
Board members discussed the vendor relationship for EMS billing and collection services, saying residents and staff had reported persistent issues. Staff recommended terminating the incumbent agreement (RFP 252025-003) and moving to Digitech Computer LLC, the second-ranked proposer. "We tried to work through them, and we don't feel like our needs are being met by the current vendor," the public-safety chief said.
Commissioner discussion noted the incumbent had been the low-cost bidder in prior budget discussions but that reported service failures and citizen complaints justified a change. One commissioner said staff had been diligent in investigating the problems and thanked the chief for pursuing alternatives.
A motion to approve the purchases, terminate the existing EMS-billing agreement, and proceed with the recommended replacement vendor passed by voice vote.
The vote came alongside other operational items the board handled in the same meeting, including a recommended extension of a Federal Engineering consulting agreement for the county'9s P25 radio implementation (staff said the county is within budget and has about a $40,000 surplus on the project).
The board also approved a housekeeping budget transfer of $61,540 from reserve contingencies to reestablish authority for a 911/digital-services grant that had been received in a prior year and swept to reserves.
The meeting wrapped with approval of routine bills; county staff will begin procurement and contract-termination steps consistent with the board'9s motion.
