HOMER — For the first time in more than 10 years Banks County is raising its ambulance trip fees.
On the recommendation of Fire/EMS Chief Steve Nichols, the county commission voted Tuesday night to increase fees by 19 percent overall.
“One thing that we have the responsibility to do is go back and look at what our charges are and our service levels, and make sure that we keep the service level adequate that we’re meeting the needs of the citizens in Banks County,” Nichols said. “In doing so, part of that is being financially fit. We saw 300-percent increases in drug charges. We saw 25- to 30-percent increases in soft good charges for our ambulance service, so instead of passing that along to the citizens in the form of a tax increase, we looked at other ways to meet those financial needs.
“Part of that is revenue where we charge per trip,” Nichols said. “Ours hadn’t been evaluated since before 2007. We were well overdue to have that looked at. We compared it with the regional area and found we were the lowest tier that there was as far as the services went.”
Nichols said the increase, which takes effect July 1, will generate about $220,000 per year.
“We feel this will help over the future years for the county to recoup some of the expenditures requested and thus reduce the need for the burden placed on the taxpayers of Banks County,” Nichols told commissioners.
Nichols said the change will affect only about 4 percent of individuals served by EMS, since the number of self-pay citizens is very small.
“We’re looking at less than 70 of the transports that we make,” Nichols said. “You’re probably going to see about 50 percent of those being Banks County residents.”
The majority of the increased cost will be borne by insurance companies, Medicare and Medicaid, Nichols said.
“We are in need of additional ambulances and personnel,” Nichols told commissioners. “All these challenges face us in the near future and we are committed to find ways to support your efforts in accomplishing these goals for our service.”
