Decision on Entire City Due Early In New Year
CHANDLER, Ariz. - After winning the overwhelming endorsement of the Scottsdale City Council and an independent panel of public safety experts there, Chandler has asked Professional Medical Transport (PMT) to begin providing emergency services to half of the city effective December 18.
The decision is the latest in a series of setbacks for Chandler’s incumbent provider, Southwest Ambulance.
Earlier this year its parent company received what appears to be the largest fine in emergency services history - $1 million - and had its contract terminated in Fort Worth, Texas for poor response times.
And just last month Southwest Ambulance lost to PMT in 31 of 35 categories used by Scottsdale officials to determine the best emergency services provider for its future.
“The story of Scottsdale and Chandler is really the tale of two companies. Southwest Ambulance continues to focus more on preventing competition in the Valley via threats and hypocrisy rather than on better pay for their employees and better programs that will make a difference to the people our company will now serve,” said Pat Cantelme, president-911 Service for PMT.
Cantelme and Arizona emergency services veteran Bob Ramsey acquired a controlling interest in PMT earlier this year. Ramsey was also the founder of Southwest Ambulance, before selling it to Rural/Metro in 1997.
“Political intimidation like that attempted by Southwest Ambulance in recent months was more typical of sad, bygone eras. Chandler and Scottsdale weren’t intimidated; just as other Valley cities shouldn’t be and surely won’t be in the future. Instead, Chandler and Scottsdale encouraged competition and their residents will end up being the biggest beneficiaries of competition. Until our purchase of PMT earlier this year the Valley was one of the largest metropolitan areas in the country without robust competition in the private emergency transportation services sector,” Cantelme said.
The City of Chandler is expected to decide on a long-term contract with PMT or Southwest Ambulance early in 2006. Both companies recently submitted responses to Chandler’s Request for Proposals.
Southwest Ambulance’s recent attempts to block competition in Chandler via aggressive lobbying and legal tactics were denied.