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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend February 9, 2006 Mercy Flights ambulance dispatch now runs you $250 By BILL KETTLER Mail Tribune Calling for an ambulance used to be free unless you actually took a ride to the hospital, but those days are fading fast. Mercy Flights, Jackson County’s largest ambulance service, began charging a $250 service fee on Feb. 1 for dispatching an ambulance even if no one is transported to a hospital. Ashland Fire & Rescue already has authorization to levy a service charge, and the Rogue River Rural Fire District may ask Jackson County commissioners for the right to assess a "show-up fee" when its contract comes up for renewal later this year. Mercy Flights’ contract with Jackson County has included the service charge option for several years. Ken Parsons, the nonprofit ambulance company’s general manager, said rising costs and declining compensation from Medicare and insurance companies finally forced the ambulance company to start billing for sending an ambulance. "We had to look at some way to spread the costs over a bigger population group," Parsons said, noting that only about one patient in four actually pays the full fare for ambulance service. Parsons said there’s a cost involved whenever an ambulance is dispatched, even if there’s little or no medical care provided. It’s unrealistic for people to expect that service at no charge, he said. Advertisement "The TV repairman charges you even if all he does is plug the TV back in," he noted. The new Mercy Flights charge has angered people who say it will create a hardship for someone living on a fixed income. "The $250 is too much," said Charles Tisler of Central Point. "I can understand them charging $25 or even $50 maybe. The (staff) salaries are being paid whether they sit playing checkers or whether they ride in the ambulance." Tisler said some people may choose not to call an ambulance rather than pay the $250. "There has to be some way to get help to people on Social Security so they don’t have to eat dog food to pay (for ambulance service)." Parsons announced the billing change in December when Mercy Flights won approval from county commissioners to increase the charge for ambulance service from $675 to $800. The commissioners also increased Ashland Fire & Rescue’s ambulance charge to $800 (up from $700). Oregon law gives county commissioners responsibility for allocating ambulance service areas and for approving ambulance fees. Ashland has the authority to bill for dispatching an ambulance, but generally does not charge the service fee, said Greg Case, division fire chief for emergency medical services, fire and training. Case said that the level of service EMTs provide determines whether a service charge will be billed. "If we just go out and check somebody out (for symptoms of a heart attack or stroke) there’s no charge," he said. Ambulance service in Ashland is subsidized by the city of Ashland. The city contributed $1.2 million to the service in 2004, Fire Chief Keith Woodley told county commissioners in December. Mercy Flights does not receive tax support. "It’s very hard for (independent ambulance companies) to stay in business," Case said. Parsons said Mercy Flights will not bill the service charge when an ambulance is ordered by a third party — such as a passerby who sees someone in trouble and calls 9-1-1 — unless EMTs actually provide medical care or transport the person to a hospital. The Rogue River Rural Fire District does not charge a dispatch fee, but that could change, said Fire Chief Ben Ramsey. Like the county’s two other ambulance services, Rogue River serves many Medicare patients, and compensation from Medicare falls far below the actual cost of providing the service, Ramsey said. Rogue River charges $705 for basic ambulance service, but Medicare pays only $404. That means the district has to find a way to make up the $300 difference for every Medicare call. Tisler, the Central Point man who opposes the service charge, said he has no quarrel with the increase in basic fees, but he fears it will prevent some people from calling for an ambulance during an emergency. He said the fee should at least be based on the mileage an ambulance has to travel. "It’s the same whether they go 10 miles or 10 blocks or 10 feet," he said. Reach reporter Bill Kettler at 776-4492, or e-mail Mercy Flights ambulance dispatch now runs you $250 ">[email protected] . 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