Fire Authority Ambulance Plan Blasted

Accusing the Orange County Fire Authority of trying to turn public safety into profit at the risk of injured patients, ambulance operators fiercely objected Wednesday to the agency’s proposal to take over ambulance service now provided by eight private companies.

“The fire department is in the business of fire prevention and public safety, not the delivery of health-care services,” said Michael Dimas, president of Medix Ambulance in Mission Viejo. “Let’s face it: Government is not designed to earn a profit . . . and the stakes are just too high here.”

Members of the Ambulance Assn. of Orange County formally opposed the in-house ambulance proposal for the first time Wednesday, urging Fire Authority officials to consider other options. Ambulance businesses would be devastated under the plan, and at least 140 workers would lose their jobs, the members said.

During the next few months, the Fire Authority will decide whether to drop the private service and provide emergency transportation with its own fleet of vehicles, a change officials say would cut response time and reduce ambulance fees by about 10%.

When ambulances are dispatched to transport victims to hospitals under the current system, county paramedics often ride along to administer treatment and the patient is then charged about $300 for the service.

The authority would gain about $4 million in annual revenue by taking over ambulance service, money that would help close a budget deficit and prevent other cutbacks. Fire Authority ambulances would transport victims for about $270 per ride, and each ambulance and fire engine would be staffed with its own firefighter/paramedics. Under the current system, ambulances are staffed by lesser-trained emergency medical technicians.

“We’re already doing the pre-hospital patient care now, but the ambulance companies are getting full payment for the services,” said Capt. Scott Brown, a Fire Authority spokesman. “We see a way to continue that same level of care for less money. It has never been about shutting someone out.”

But ambulance operators doubted the authority could manage the system without raising fees to cover added costs. They suggested an alternative plan in which private companies would pay the Fire Authority for the use of its paramedics, bringing in $1.4 million per year for the agency but raising transportation fees by at least $150 per hospital trip. Only four counties in the state have lower ambulance fees than Orange County’s.

Members of the group also threatened legal action if the Fire Authority proceeds to eliminate private sector jobs. Private carriers have argued that public agencies cannot take control of ambulance service without a competitive bidding process.