Ross Township adds $150,000 ARPA subgrant and approves ambulance payment program amendment

Ross Township trustees voted to add $150,000 in local ARPA funds to the township's 2024 budget and to amend the township's existing ambulance-billing contract to participate in an ambulance supplemental payment program, the fiscal officer reported during the board's regular meeting.

The fiscal officer told the board the $150,000 came from Butler County's local community ARPA allocation and will be subgranted to RAM and G Foods; she said the township will front the money from the general fund while the township waits for an amended certificate to adjust revenue and appropriations. "I'll go ahead and provide them the money upfront out of the general fund but once this come the amended certificate comes through I'll do a utility and pay it out of the ARPA fund," the fiscal officer said.

The board also approved an amendment to its contract with Medicount Management Inc., the township's ambulance billing vendor, to allow participation in an ambulance supplemental payment program. The fiscal officer described the program as a form of revenue enhancement that functions like a matching arrangement: if the township advances a portion of funds up front, the program can yield additional federal reimbursement. She emphasized the township must opt in by Oct. 1 to be eligible for revenue distributions in 2026.

"We have to opt in by the October 1st," the fiscal officer said, explaining the timing is driven by program rules. She said the township can monitor returns quarterly and opt out if the program proves unproductive.

The fiscal officer provided context on scale and cost: the township typically budgets about $150,000 annually in ambulance billing revenue; in a prior year the billing vendor captured about $200,000. She said the township paid roughly $336,000 in fees to Medicount the previous year and netted roughly $1,170,000 from their work; the supplemental program vendor estimated another potential $60,000 to $770,000 in federal reimbursements, though the fiscal officer warned that the state's matching contribution is constrained.

On the motions, roll calls were recorded and both resolutions passed with the trustees present voting in the affirmative; one trustee was absent. The board did not record a named mover or seconder in the publicly read roll calls.

The fiscal officer also clarified how the vendor handles collections. Addressing concerns that the township would send collectors after residents, she said Medicount pursues insurance payments and writes off a substantial amount, and "we do not go after residents; they don't hound, they don't do collections," adding the township intends not to pursue residents who are unable to pay.

The amendments take effect immediately for administrative purposes; the township will proceed with the subgrant and the contract amendment now that the board has approved the resolutions. The board directed staff to process the amended certificate and to report back on program performance in future financial updates.