By Ginger Shepherd
The Journal Record (Oklahoma City, OK)
Copyright 2006 Dolan Media Newswires
As Oklahoma’s two biggest cities evaluate their partnership with the Emergency Medical Services Authority, there is a lot of uncertainty of what will happen to EMSA’s employees and to surrounding communities. Both cities are looking at turning over ambulance services to their fire departments; both believe they can provide the service at a better cost to the city.
Tina Wells, the director for community relations with the EMSA in Tulsa, said that both cities are allowed to evaluate their partnership with the public trust authority about every five years. This evaluation is a time for the cities to decide if they want to continue the partnership or not.
In the case of both cities, each is claiming that they can save their cities money by offering the ambulance service themselves. David Dayringer, Tulsa Fire Department deputy fire chief of support services, said if the city’s fire department took over the ambulance service, the city would save about $11 million over the first five years.
The city’s start-up cost is very minimal, he said. It was a similar story in Oklahoma City; however, Wells pointed out that once Oklahoma City sat down with EMSA officials and started working with some of the real numbers, the cost savings weren’t as much. She said that EMSA had real projects and numbers from doing the work whereas Oklahoma City did not since it had not been providing the service.
EMSA has been providing emergency medical services in the state for about 28 years. Wells couldn’t immediately comment on Tulsa’s proposal since the authority is currently reviewing it, but they do look forwarding to working with city officials and the fire department. Oklahoma City’s city council has deferred the decision until Oct. 24, according to the city’s Web site.
Both cities have until the end of the month to make a decision, though it has been reported that Tulsa Mayor Kathy Taylor may ask for an extension. Dayringer said TFD was first asked to look to into how much it would cost the city and if there would be a cost savings by the mayor and City Council in late winter and early spring as the budget process began. EMSA asked for a $1.87 million subsidy from Tulsa this year, as well as additional subsidies from Bixby, Jenks and Sands Springs, Wells said.
EMSA is primarily funded by user fees. However, the request came after the authority has dealt with reduced Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements. She said changes were made to the reimbursements in April 2002. At the time, the authority was prepared with cash reserves to cover the costs. About 42 percent of EMSA’s patients are Medicare or Medicaid patients, she said, and those are patients that it is illegal for them to bill for the remaining costs. About another 30 percent of patients have no insurance.
Next year, EMSA will ask for a $2.538 million subsidy, she said. Wells said if the cities decide to move away from EMSA and provide their own ambulance service, then the public authority will dissolve. In the Tulsa office there are 21 employees while there are 15 in Oklahoma City. EMSA contracts with Paramedics Plus for its ambulance crews, she said. In Oklahoma City there are 203 full-time employees and 33 part-time employees, with about 159 full-time employees and 72 part-time employees Tulsa.
“If the trust were to be dissolved, it is unclear what would happen to these valuable employees and public servants,” Wells said. “There are many issues like this that need further exploration and discussion in coming weeks. " Even more, it leaves the question of what will happen to other cities.
If EMSA is dissolved, Wells said there will not be any emergency medical service for Bixby, Jenks or Sands Springs just in the Tulsa area. Broken Arrow has its own ambulance service. “It’s not just the Tulsa area. There are 12 communities in Oklahoma City that rely on EMSA,” Wells said, pointing out that it could mean that 16 communities are without emergency medical service.