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City firefighters may take over 911 calls
By THOMAS MICHALSKI
Article published on Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2008 |
PINELLAS PARK – Pinellas Park firefighters may take over 911 emergency transportation responses to medical facilities, leaving Sunstar EMS to handle just nonemergency calls.
The idea is being floated to fire officials from not only Pinellas Park, but from all other agencies in Pinellas County as well.
A special task force comprised of fire chiefs, fire union officials and other interested parties is expected to be formed to investigate the feasibility of the plan.
No actual target date to launch the project has been established, but at least one fire official said the end of 2009 is a safe bet for it to happen.
Having municipal rescue teams handle 911 calls apparently is being welcomed by the county’s fire chiefs, but it could mean spending additional money for rescue vehicles, equipment and training.
That cost, however, would be absorbed by Pinellas County and not local municipalities that already are strapped for cash due to state-mandated tax reform.
The plan already has piqued the interest of Pinellas County’s chiefs, but the idea is a far cry from being a done deal.
Pinellas Park Fire Chief Doug Lewis, vice president of the Pinellas County Fire Chiefs Association, said allowing local departments to handle EMS calls would benefit both the county and municipalities.
In speaking as a city fire chief and not as a representative of the association, Lewis said it is too early to determine the impact of the plan on his city and that of other municipalities that would have to shoulder the additional emergency services.
Fire rescue units now respond to 911 calls and perform certain preliminary medical procedures. Transportation to hospitals, however, is strictly the function of Sunstar.
The fire chiefs group supports looking into the plan for cities to take over 911 calls. Preliminary thoughts call for the county to bill patients for calls conducted by municipal agencies and paying the cities for their services.
It also has been not determined whether cities have enough equipment to take on the additional responsibilities. A basic ambulance, without electronics and other equipment, costs between $110,000 and $150,000. That figure can climb to well over $200,000 per vehicle when radios, medical equipment and other items are factored in.
Should cities need those additional ambulances, however, the costs would be reimbursed by the county.
If the plan becomes reality, Lewis said, property owners would see a slight decrease in their property taxes. He said more localized city emergency services would benefit residents.
The Pinellas County Emergency Medical Services Authority that operates Sunstar EMS was created in 1980. Ambulance services are funded through user fees instead of taxes due to the high amount of tourists and other nonresidents that visit Pinellas County.
During 2006-07 Sunstar responded to 172,391 county-wide calls of which
121,089 resulted in transpiration runs. From October 2007 to last month there were 150,257 responses of which 103,705 resulted in emergencies.
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Article published on Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2008
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