City Council

CITY OF SARATOGA SPRINGS Ambulance Transport Workshop Music Hall Wednesday, February 25, 2009 6:00 P.M. PRESENT: Scott Johnson, Mayor John Franck, Commissioner of Accounts Ken Ivins, Commissioner of Finance Ron Kim, Commissioner of DPS Anthony Scirocco, Commissioner of DPW STAFF PRESENT: Michele Boxley, Deputy Commissioner, Accounts Eileen Finneran, Deputy Commissioner, DPS Shauna Sutton, Deputy Mayor Joe Scala, City Attorney EXCUSED: Kate Jarosh, Deputy Commissioner, Finance ABSCENT: Patrick Design, Deputy Commissioner, DPW RECORDING OF PROCEEDING The proceedings of this meeting were taped for the benefit of the secretary. Because the minutes are not a verbatim record of the proceedings, the minutes are not a word-for-word transcript. Commissioner Kim advised the interest behind this RFP is economics. It is economically important to explore this option as a way for the City to raise revenue. Commissioner Kim introduced Empire Ambulance Service as the first presenter. Presentation – Empire Ambulance Service Mike Acquino, Chief Operating Officer introduced himself. He provided a print out of the slides from his presentation. Mike explained ‘C’, ‘D’, and ‘E’ calls are known as advanced life support (ALS) and ‘A’ and ‘B’ calls are basic life support calls. Empire will reimburse the City 100% of all money received for ALS calls and from heavy and light rescue services provided. Mike recapped the compensation to the City as $100,000 for rent, and estimated $185,000 for ALS reimbursement for a total of $285,000 plus all light and heavy rescues. Value added services include: o Scheduled meetings with the City to discuss all matters relating to quality improvement. o Empire will supply all oxygen and oxygen supplies used by the City Fire Department. o Empire will participate in MCI drills upon request. o Empire will participate in any health fair or EMS related venture within the City upon request. o Empire will provide stand-by service at any City sponsored major event upon request. o Empire will provide electronic pre-hospital care reporting (e-PCR) capability for the City Fire Department should they choose. Ambulance Transport Services Workshop 2/25/09 Empire will hire approximately 16 – 20 employees to meet the needs of the City. Highest hiring priority will be given to residents of the City of Saratoga Springs or the neighboring communities. The financial impact to the City of Saratoga Springs over a 5 year contract is $1,425,000. Presentation – Mohawk Ambulance Richard Braim, Vice President of Operations introduced himself. He provided a print out of the slides from his presentation. Mohawk Ambulance answers nearly 60,000 calls each year. They are a ‘qualified’ bidder meaning they are the only licensed ambulance service in all of Saratoga County. Mohawk Ambulance will be staffed by a minimum of 2 dispatchers at all times, up to 4 at peak times. They will bill for ALS services provided by the City of Saratoga Springs’ Fire Department. It is estimated that ALS billings will generate $140,000 - $180,000 per year in revenue for the City. Mohawk will pay fair market value for rent of the station on West Avenue to house their ambulance. Mohawk Ambulance along with Saratoga Emergency Medical Services are the only 2 providers who have the necessary Department of Health licensure to operate in the City of Saratoga Springs. Presentation – Saratoga Emergency Medical Services (SEMS) George Miller, Vice President and volunteer of SEMS, introduced himself. He also introduced the staff of SEMS by asking them to stand. George explained as a not-for-profit (501-C3 status), they can’t compete with for profit entities; however, their service pays for itself. They have serviced the City of Saratoga Springs for 40 years and the side of their ambulance says Saratoga, not a corporate name. SEMS is self funding; no city taxes are used to fund their services. If the City of Saratoga Springs awards the bid to someone other than SEMS; the number of calls the Saratoga Springs Fire Department will have to respond to will increase by 700+ calls per year. The Saratoga Springs Fire Department will have to respond to all EMS calls, not just the priority 1 calls they respond to now. The number of firefighters will need to increase from the current number to accommodate the increase in calls. George pointed out that Assistant Chief John Betor was quoted in a Saratogian article, dated 12/23/08, as having said “Revenue from running the ambulance will only raise enough revenue to fund our increased staffing needs.” Choosing SEMS will eliminate the need to hire more firefighters. Right now, the Saratoga Springs Fire Department rides in back of the ambulance 10% of the time. George also pointed out that implementation of the RFP will not improve patient care in the City. It will actually decrease the number of paramedic level responses. Also, who will provide help to the neighboring communities? George Miller closed with the following thoughts/comments: o If SEMS goes away, it cannot come back. o If SEMS is not chosen, many people will lose their jobs. Commissioner Kim reminded all the bidders that he had requested a copy of each of their financial statements and that they should forward the financial statements to his office. ADJOURNMENT Page 2 of 3 Ambulance Transport Services Workshop 2/25/09 There being no further business, the workshop ended at 6:45 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Lisa Ribis Approved: 3-17-09 Vote: 5 - 0 Page 3 of 3