In the regular monthly meeting of the Cole Camp Ambulance District, during the routine business of approval of minutes and financials, it was pointed out the sales tax was up for the year by $6,000 compared to the previous year, but the year before it was down $16,000, so there was still a $10,000 deficit.
The Board is in the process of acquiring the loan at the bank to combine all debt into one payment but is still waiting on the appraisal to finalize.
The Board will be forming a committee that will be promoting the November ballot of the property tax levy. There is a state statute that prohibits the Ambulance Board from using tax dollars to promote any ballot measure, even their own.
The Board discussed charging for runs. Mr. Meuschke advised the Board that they need to be careful about how they go about it. They would not want someone to hesitate about calling when they need help because they might get a bill if they are not going to be transported. The District has always sort of looked at the situation like people pay the District property tax that is sort of like a membership for those that live in the area.
Meuschke explained that is why they offer discounts and do service calls to people that live in the Ambulance District. Charging for lift assist or blood pressure checks is something that would greatly affect the elderly community that lives alone. Meuschke went on to say the Board can select in their reporting system what is considered a “Patient.”
One example would be if the Ambulance arrives and helps someone up and they are not hurt and don’t need to be transported, the Board could not consider them a Patient, therefore they would not bill them.
Another example is the Ambulance is called and the person’s blood pressure is low and they are unconscious. The EMT’s administer meds through an IV and get them back to normal, but they don’t need to go to the hospital, The District would then send a bill in the amount of $252.00 because that is what Medicare would pay if approved.
There was continued discussion on switching the billing company. The Board finally decided to switch to AIM for the District’s billing in January 2025. This gives the required time the new company needs to make the switch with insurance payers. The Board also said they would like to see the District have some additional access to Patient billing records and some additional transparency. The District has been with the same billing company for over ten years.
