Sauk Centre council approves $431,800 in ambulance billing write-offs, closes older billing files

The Sauk Centre City Council on Jan. 21, 2025 approved the Ambulance Department’s request to remove uncollectible and insurance write-down amounts totaling $431,802.37 and to close Expert Billing files totaling $278,602.03.

Ambulance Director Kathy Struffert presented the department’s fourth-quarter and year-end summaries. Assistant Ambulance Director Tim Deschene reported 803 billed calls in 2025 for a total billed amount of $1,086,907 and total collections of $673,599.65; 415 open files remain with a combined balance of $323,052.01. The 4th-quarter report showed 300 total calls and a patient population skewed toward ages 60–90.

Council Member Scott Kowski moved to approve the write-offs and closure of the Expert Billing files; Council Member Joe Fuechtmann seconded the motion. The council voted unanimously to approve the request.

City staff described these actions as routine annual accounting adjustments to clear uncollectible receivables and record insurance write-downs; no change to service levels or staffing was proposed. The motion and vote were recorded as formal action on the meeting agenda.

Council did not provide additional details in the record about the plan for recovering outstanding receivables beyond the actions described, nor did the minutes specify whether any files would be retained for future collection attempts. The council’s approval completes the department’s year-end accounting steps recorded in the meeting minutes.