INDEPENDENCE — An attempt by ambulance services in Montgomery County to have a county subsidy restored to a 2 mills was denied by county commissioners on Monday.
On July 21, commissioners agreed to reduce the county ambulance subsidy, which is appropriated to ambulance services in Coffeyville, Independence, Caney and Cherryvale, in the 2009 budget from 2 mills to 1.5 mills. The commission was able to cut the mill levy by one-half of one mill because of higher property valuations in Montgomery County, meaning that the 2009 mill levy would generate more income at 1.5 mills than at 2 mills in 2008.
At 1.5 mills, the ambulance subsidy is expected to generate $734,564 in 2009. The current 2008 county budget has the ambulance levy at 2 mills, which is generating $602,263 for the four ambulance services in Montgomery County.
While city leaders said they appreciated the additional revenue, they wished to have the mill levy restored to the 2-mill levy because of the rising cost of fuel, equipment and supplies.
“The costs of providing an ambulance service are far outweighing the income we’re getting from local and county taxpayers,” said Jim Wilhelms of the Coffeyville EMS Service, who also said that Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements for emergency services continue to be cut.
Wilhelms pointed to a Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement schedule, showing the amount of money that the federal government will provide for a patient’s emergency care. For example, a person undergoing cardiac arrest on an ambulance will require the use of a chest monitor device, which has a $30,000 price tag. The federal government’s reimbursement on a per patient basis is about $75.
Trey Cocking, Cherryvale city administrator, appealed to the commission to publish the county’s proposed 2009 budget with the ambulance subsidy restored to 2.0 mills. When the commission has its public hearing concerning the 2009 budget on Aug. 5, the commission can decide at that time to lower that ambulance subsidy to 1.5 mills or have it placed at 2.0 mills for the 2009 budget year. The commission cannot increase that levy above 2.0 mills.
“I know it’s easy for you to sit there and say, ‘Hey, we’re cutting your levy but giving you more money’,” said Cocking. “But we desperately need that levy to be restored to 2 mills. Between the four ambulance services in Montgomery County, we’re already experiencing a $300,000 loss.”
However, plans to restore the ambulance subsidy to its full funding did not find any favor among a majority of the commission.
“That is not my intent,” said commission Gene Tucker regarding Cocking’s plea to restore the full 2.0 mills.
“Mine either,” echoed commission chairman Billie Lewark-Wood. “We will publish the 2009 budget with the 1.5 mills. My suggestion is that you work with the 1.5 mills for one year and let us know how it works.”
Commissioner Tony Fowler did not say anything during the discussion.
The leaders of the four ambulance services said after the meeting that dipping into local tax levies — which is the dominant source of revenue for local ambulance services — may be the only way they can receive more income for their ambulance programs.
In 2002, then-commissioners Rudy Taylor, French Hey and Lee Mattix agreed to raise the ambulance levy from 1.0 mills to 2.0 mills because of a new fee structure implemented by the federal government as well as reimbursement cuts from Medicaid and Medicare. Raising that levy to 2.0 mills was effective for only one year, however the ambulance levy had been maintained at 2.0 mills since that time.
Commissioners suggested that the four ambulance services return to the commission in 2009 with proposed budgets on how their ambulance subsidy would be used.
