County/Cities hear EMS agency idea again

By PATSY STODDARD Editor

Another meeting was held with the committee to discuss the new Emergency Medical Services Agency the county is proposing to adopt. Commissioner Keith Brady said there have been some concerns with the setting up of the new agency. He said the main reason for the new agency is to take care of the Obamacare requirements for the county. The county doesn’t have the resources to make all the EMTs employees and offer them health insurance. The county is currently being penalized for the EMTs that have been over their hours.
Mayor Hilary Gordon asked why the emergency medical services can’t remain the same. Commissioner Brady said the county has to be in compliance with Obamacare, they are currently checking with a specialist lawyer for Obamacare to see what options there are for the county.
Castle Dale City council person Julie Johansen said she likes the idea of a new agency and sees it as an opportunity for the cities to have input into how the agency is put together.
Jim Gordon, current EMS director said in talking to other counties some of them are listing EMTs hours as units.
If there were more EMTs then the current problem of going over hours could be solved. Some EMTs have 400-500 on call hours each month.
Orangeville mayor Roger Swenson asked how the county can recruit more EMTs. Maybe the county can look at increasing wages.
Commissioner Brady asked for specific questions about the documents for the agency and what concerns the cities have. Swenson said the wording in the document that states the cities provide EMT service needs to be taken out, because currently the cities don’t provide emergency services.
Leonard Norton, Huntington city councilman and also an EMT had concerns about the licensing of the new organization. Commissioner Brady said he has talked to the state licensing division and trading the license from the county to this new agency shouldn’t be a problem.
Norton said he heard it could take up to six months.
Mayor Pat Brady from Green River said his city has looked at having their own license for EMTs. The county system hasn’t been working for Green River. They don’t have enough coverage and enough EMTs. They have also been having scheduling problems with the EMTs they do have. Green River likes the idea of having a manager for the garage like used to be in place.
The level of training for EMTs was discussed. The cost to train everyone to paramedic level is very expensive.
Dr. Engar is the supervising physician for the Emery County EMS. He has said he can come to board meetings, but doesn’t have time to actually be on the board.
Castle Dale City Mayor Dan Van Wagoner asked about the garage leads and how they would be chosen. The leads will be selected from the EMTs running out of a garage and approved by the board.
There will be nine board members, one from each city and two from the county. A secretary and a full time director will also be needed. The five garage leads, director and a secretary will be paid positions. Board members may receive a stipend for meeting attendance, but otherwise the board positions are volunteer.
One question raised is if this agency has shortfalls will the county pick it up and will there be a budget item in the county budget for this purpose.
Norton said it needs to be in the agency founding documents that the county will pick up any shortfalls. The funding element needs to be resolved.
If the county kept the EMS under its umbrella the Obamacare problem is the main issue. Commissioner Ethan Migliori indicated sacrifices would have to be made to fund the insurance, “What are you willing to sacrifice.”
Concessions would have to be made, non-essential items would have to be cut, including; roads, curb and gutter. “What’s least important to you as a mayor?”
Ferron Mayor Trent Jackson wondered if money could be saved by not offering 100 percent insurance for county workers. Commissioner Migliori said the county has looked at that and the savings wouldn’t be that much because insurance costs for the county haven’t gone up much recently. The county is willing to look at that, also there are other places that could be skimmed down. The mineral lease money could also be restructured and rerouted.
The new agency is set to be in place by Jan. 1, 2017. An RFP will be prepared to advertise for a director. After the board is formed it can advertise for payroll. Some agencies contract with the county for their bookkeeping needs.
Some committee members felt there wasn’t enough input on the documents from the cities and EMTs. There was only one meeting to discuss the new agency with the EMTs and not all EMTs were included.
Stoney Jensen from the Elmo council asked that the process slow down and be done correctly. Those who volunteered to be on the committee need to sit down and work through the issues.
If the agency is to succeed it needs clear cut rules and not vague outlines. The commissioners countered that this was how they set it up so the board could make those rules and guidelines.
Mayor Jackson said his city wouldn’t sign-off on the new agency unless it’s clearly stated the cities will not be held liable for shortfalls.
“This is important to everyone and we want it to be done right,” said Mayor Van Wagoner.
Commissioner Brady said he understands there are concerns and they will work on the structure and the wording so there will be no city liability. Also the county’s role in the new agency needs to be more clearly defined as the county wants limited involvement.
All cities will send a representative to the next planning meeting.