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Manager cites past ambulance contract spikes as reason many towns consider in‑house service
Summary
The town manager described how a neighboring town's ambulance contract rose sharply and said such cost volatility can drive towns to consider bringing ambulance services in-house; he said Lincoln currently receives good service for the money.
The town manager described experience in Wolfborough where an ambulance contract rose substantially and the incumbent chose not to bid, leading the town to evaluate bringing ambulance services into the fire department's operations. He said that in his prior town the contract "jumped from $280,000 to $750,000," after which bids returned much higher figures and the town pursued a business plan for in-house service.
"...jumped from $280,000 to $750,000," the manager (speaker 2) said in recounting the Wolfborough example. He added the fire department there already had staffing and a new public safety building under development, which informed the town's decision. The manager emphasized that Lincoln has an all-volunteer fire department, so some options (like a voter referendum to bring ambulance service in-house) are not directly comparable.
Committee members raised cost concerns and said they want more information on ambulance-service budgeting; the manager said he will hold quarterly (0.25 monthly) meetings with the ambulance director to monitor costs and bring updates to the committee.
