Siloam Springs May End Rural Ambulance Service

BENTONVILLE — Siloam Springs officials said Thursday the city will end rural ambulance service “the moment the funding from the county dries up,” which could be at the end of March.

David Cameron, Siloam Springs city manager, told County Judge Bob Clinard in an email he was disappointed the county apparently has changed the agreement Cameron thought existed, which was Siloam Springs would receive $335,000 to reimburse the city for rural ambulance service in 2014.

At A Glance

Town Hall Meetings

Benton County’s justices of the peace have organized a series of town hall meetings to inform voters on the plan to provide rural ambulance service before the Feb. 11 vote. Upcoming meetings include:

• 6 p.m. tonight at the Billy V. Hall Senior Center in Gravette.

• 1 p.m. Saturday in the City Council room at Lowell City Hall.

• 6 p.m. Tuesday in the Pea Ridge Fire Department community room.

• 6:30 p.m. Jan. 30 at the Centerton Fire Department.

• 7 p.m. Feb. 3 at the Prairie Creek Community Building.

Source: Staff Report

“It now appears as though the county may renege upon what we all agreed to in August/September of last year,” Cameron wrote in his email. “Now to learn that funding may be conditional upon a referendum that was never in the equation is disturbing and would have certainly affected the language in our previous resolution.”

The city’s Board of Directors approved a resolution Tuesday stating the city would end ambulance service at the end of 2014 if no permanent funding mechanism is in place. Cameron and Fire Chief Greg Neely both said the city developed and approved the Fire Department’s 2014 budget using the entire $335,000.

Neely said he learned of the county’s plan to commit to making only a partial payment — through the end of March — when he received the proposed contract for ambulance service Jan. 14. Neely said he was unaware of the decision to await the election's outcome until he contacted the county after receiving the contract.

“That’s when I finally got the revelation that they were only planning on paying us for the first quarter of the year,” Neely said.

The department’s budget will have to be cut or new money found if the county’s subsidy is less than $335,000, Neely said.

“We’re looking at a quarter-million dollar shortfall if the county doesn’t follow through on the agreement,” he said.

Clinard said there are no signed agreements with any of the ambulance providers. He said the county and cities agreed on what the providers said they needed and that information was turned over to the Quorum Court. The county didn't specifically notify any provider of the decision to wait until the election, Clinard said.

“There are no signed contracts,” Clinard said. “We presented to the court what the providers said they needed. The court decided to fund only three months. It’s been in the paper, it’s been advertised. We did not send out a letter to everybody. We just assumed, having it in the newspaper and having it in the minutes of our meetings, that the providers would know that.”

The Quorum Court created an emergency medical services district with an $85 annual fee to be levied on households in the district. The fee would pay the county’s cost to make ambulance service available. The district and fee are for households outside cities and not in the Northeast Benton County Emergency Medical Service District.

The county has been working with the seven cities that provide ambulance service in the county since 2010, seeking a formal arrangement to pay for the service.

The county has agreed to pay seven municipal fire departments providing rural ambulance service about $942,000 for 2014. The money would ensure the service is available, but not pay the cost of patient care.

Kurt Moore, justice of the peace for District 13, which includes much of the area around Siloam Springs, said he thought all of the providers knew of the decision on only paying for three months until the outcome of the vote is known. He said he’s disappointed the city is taking the position Cameron outlined in his email.

“I was under the impression that all the parties involved were aware,” he said. “We’ve certainly been discussing it long enough.”

Tom Allen, justice of the peace for district 4 and chairman of the Finance Committee, said he didn’t understand how the decision to wait for the results of the vote could surprise anyone. Allen said he understands the city’s situation, but the county has to make its own decisions.

“All of our decisions were made in public meetings and they’ve been in the newspaper,” Allen said. “We’ve been having these town hall meetings, including one in Siloam Springs where, I believe, city representatives attended. I don’t think it should be a surprise to them. I fully respect their decision, if that’s what they choose to do. It doesn’t change much at this point. We’re still going to wait for the referendum and then decide what we’re going to do.”

Tom Jenkins, Rogers fire chief, said his understanding was also the county intended to pay for the ambulance service for all of 2014, adding he also feels “excluded from the conversation” about the process and the election, even if unintentionally. He said his department is hiring employees to be able to provide the service. Jenkins said he's optimistic the county and cities will find a solution.

“As elected officials and bureaucrats, our job is to make sure EMS is not suspended,” he said. “I don’t know of one JP who thinks that’s a good idea. We’re not to a point where we’re making plans to stop service. But in the long term, if the county chooses not to place a priority on having ambulance service I guess we won’t either. But we’re not at that point yet.”

Patrick Carr, justice of the peace for District 12, which includes most of Siloam Springs, said everyone should slow down and not rush to make decisions before the votes are counted Feb. 11.

“I wish we would all relax and let the process work,” Carr said.

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