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Committee approves advertising for new ambulance bid and backs EMS billing rate increase
Summary
The budget committee unanimously voted to advertise a bid for a new ambulance after EMS Director Freeman Bailey reported multiple aging vehicles and long manufacturer lead times (16–20 months). The committee also recommended switching to a new third‑party billing vendor and adopting higher commercial payor rates; the vendor projects substantial revenue gains.
Woodford County's budget committee on Monday approved advertising for bids on a new ambulance and recommended changes to the county's EMS billing rates based on a new third‑party vendor's recommendations.
EMS Director Freeman Bailey told the committee the county's ambulances (model years 2009–2012) are increasingly unreliable, leaving the service with little backup. He said build times for new vehicles are currently 16–20 months, so the county needs to start the procurement process now to avoid prolonged fleet shortages.
Bailey gave a budget estimate for a new ambulance and related stretcher/loading system in the mid‑to‑high hundreds of thousands of dollars: he cited a target vehicle price in the $293,000 range but also referenced a total near $392,000; the draft budget rounds the request to $400,000 to allow for fluctuation. He said the stretcher/loading system alone is roughly $71,000. Committee members unanimously voted to advertise and begin the bid process (motion by Squire Taylor; second by Squire Carl).
Separately, Bailey said the county has selected a new billing company that recommended a revised rate chart to align the county's billings with commercial payor norms; he described the changes as "almost a 50%" increase in billed rates versus the county's prior schedule. He said Medicare and Medicaid patients would not see rate changes in practice because those payors reimburse under different rules, but higher commercial rates and improved billing practices should increase collections. Bailey said other agencies reported first‑year revenue increases ranging from about $150,000 to $300,000 after switching vendors. The committee voted to recommend the billing changes to the full fiscal court.
