Va. county moves to charge ambulance fees

Costs for ambulance trips would be paid through insurance companies and other third parties

January 22, 2010 04:31 AM

By David Sherfinski
The Washington Examiner

PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, Va. — Ambulance trips in Prince William County would cost up to $700, under a policy moved forward by the Board of County Supervisors on Tuesday, as the county became the latest in the area to broach the hot-button issue.

Costs for ambulance trips, which would be paid for through insurance companies and other third parties, would range from $400 to $700, plus $10 per mile of ambulance transport.

County tax revenues would be used to cover balances not paid for through insurance, and a waiver system would be developed for those who could not pay.

Prince William County Chairman Corey Stewart, R-at large, said the fee was a good idea.

“Insurance companies are getting away with not having to pay for ambulance and transportation services, which they have to pay for” in other surrounding districts, he said.

Neighboring Fairfax County, Prince George’s County and the District charge ambulance fees.

Montgomery County Executive Ike Leggett has pushed hard for instituting a similar fee in the Maryland suburb, pointing to it as a badly needed source of revenue for the cash-strapped county. The council, however, voted down the proposal last July.

Such a fee could be a revenue generator in a rough economic climate for local governments. The proposed Montgomery County fees, which were set between $300 and $800 plus $8.75 per mile, would generate an estimated $12.5 million a year.

And Prince William’s Fire & Rescue Department could use a boost in personnel, according to Chief Kevin McGee’s quarterly report. On Tuesday, he outlined staffing deficiencies in several parts of the county. For example, night and weekend truck/tower staffing and heavy rescue staffing were below 80 percent or outside eight-minute response areas in the last three months of the year for much of the eastern part of the county, which borders Fairfax.

"[The] problem is becoming so bad that we’re using Fairfax as a backup,” Stewart said.

Still, if the billing system is implemented, the fees would not be charged until next fiscal year, McGee said.