RIVERSIDE, Calif. — A city in California has temporarily banned two ambulance companies for not meeting requirements.
The Press Enterprise reported the Riverside City Council voted to suspend the city’s contracts with Cavalry Ambulance and AmeriCare Ambulance on April 5.
According to officials, Cavalry Ambulance did not meet the deadline for accreditation by the Commission on Accreditation of Ambulance Services. AmeriCare, which had not begun running calls yet, lost its permit because they did not have a facility to keep ambulances in the county.
Officials said the deadlines they were given was not long enough, but a majority of the city council rejected a proposal to give the company seven more months to comply with the regulations. Once Cavalry receives the accreditation, the council can reinstate the company.
AmeriCare officials said they have signed a lease on an ambulance facility in the county. However, they will remain suspended until the council has decided the company has met all of the requirements.
The two companies are among six that the county has contracted to run non-emergency calls. The use of multiple ambulance services is fairly new after years of a de facto monopoly for AMR.