Fire Department Study : County Paramedic Fees Are Suggested in Report

A study by the Orange County Fire Department has determined that the county could benefit from charging fees for the use of paramedic services.

But Fire Department officials said it would be at least a year before any decision is made to implement such fees.

Joan Steiner, financial services manager for the department, said the study did not determine how much the county should charge for its paramedic services. She said the department is still considering whether fees should cover all, or part, of the paramedic costs.

Steiner said the department is studying both direct charges, in which each user of the paramedic service would be billed, and a subscription program, in which a family or individual would be billed annually.

“Our whole study is very conceptual at this point,” she said.

Short of Money

The idea was first raised last year when the 7-year-old County Fire Department found itself falling short of money to buy new fire trucks. In a search for new revenue sources, the County Administrative Office suggested studying a paramedic fee program.

The initial study was completed recently and will be presented to the Board of Supervisors next week. It concludes that a fee program is feasible and legal, but that there are some difficulties.

The fee program would apply to all the unincorporated county and the 12 cities that contract with the county for Fire Department services. The county counsel’s office ruled that the fee program would require the approval of all 12 cities.

The 12 cities are Cypress, Irvine, La Palma, Los Alamitos, Mission Viejo, Placentia, San Juan Capistrano, Seal Beach, Stanton, Tustin, Villa Park and Yorba Linda.

Possible Conflict

The study also found that the fees might be in conflict with the county’s Gann spending cap, which limits the county budget. If the Gann spending cap applies to the fees, they could require budget cuts elsewhere in government.

There are three cities in Orange County that already have a paramedic fee program--Anaheim, Fullerton and Orange. The Fire Department’s study said the public response to those programs ranged from “mild opposition” to “excellent.”

It said some elderly residents approved of the policy because it made them feel secure that paramedic services would be available.

The Fire Department also plans to ask supervisors next week for authority to buy 62 new vehicles for a total of almost $5.5 million. The board will be asked to authorize $3.4 million for new trucks immediately, and another $2 million for the next fiscal year, which begins in July.