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Thanks to Emergency Service Providers.... |
3/2/2009 MANY THANKS TO OUR EMERGENCY SERVICE PROVIDERS!!
On Wednesday, February 18 at work session, Smithfield Supervisors met with Debbie Kulick of Bushkill Emergency Corps, and Barry Albertson of Suburban EMS. The township code allows Supervisors to contract with ambulance service providers to determine coverage and
services. The Bushkill Emergency Corps contact is Debbie Kulick, who can be reached at 570 223-1906, the Corps’s business office number. The Suburban EMS contact is Barry Albertson, at 610-923-7500.
Bushkill Emergency Corps services most of Smithfield Township, exception the area near Route 611 and the Borough of Delaware Water Gap. Bushkill also serves Middle Smithfield and Lehman Townships as well as parts of Price Township. Bushkill responds to about 3500 calls annually, and calls within Smithfield Township comprise just about 30 percent of the organization’s total yearly call volume. Calls serving recreation and vacation related activities make up a large portion of that percentage, with many to the ski area during winter months. Bushkill Emergency Corps has a total of six ambulances, two Advanced Life Support (ALS) units and four Basic Life Support (BLS) units.
Bushkill staffs an ALS unit 24 hours a day and covers a majority of the day with a supplemental BLS unit according to call demand. The organization maintains stations in Smithfield Township in Marshalls Creek, Middle Smithfield Township near Foxmoor and a third active station in Lehman Township near the base of Sugar Mountain. Bushkill maintains a volunteer base of about 42 percent which compliments the career staff answering calls within its service area.
Both services maintain response modes that require an ambulance to be enroute to a call within two minutes of its dispatch, thus providing a significant benefit in response time once the call is received. Bushkill has a very active volunteer recruitment and mentoring program. They are very proud of the professionalism and dedication of both the volunteers and staff serving our community and note that a significant number have served within Emergency Medical Services and our area in excess of 30 years. Call Debbie to volunteer!!
Suburban has four stations located in: Palmer and Forks Township, Bangor and Stroud Township. Suburban handles 5000 dispatches in Monroe County with a call volume of about 20% of their total calls in Smithfield Township.
Both ambulance services are largely funded via subscription drives
with Bushkill's in June and Suburban's in November. All patients who take advantage of the yearly subscriptions are treated as subscribers of all non-profit ambulance services under a mutual aid reciprocity agreement within Monroe County.
Although you may be a subscribing member, by law either you or your insurance company must be billed. Subscribing supporters of either organization will have any charges considered paid in full by any payment made by their insurer or in the case of those uninsured, billings are forgiven as part of the subscriber’s subscription benefit.
Both organizations emphasized that although the state mandates both specific drugs and equipment, it does not provide funding, thus the importance of the various sources of income. On average an ALS call, requiring Paramedic level skill may cost up to $1200, depending upon the treatments administered enroute to the hospital. In essence, the ALS unit provides the same treatment and medical attention that patients would receive in the ER, but often during that life-saving “Golden Hour” so vital to a positive outcome.
The supervisors asked about the cost of equipment used to provide these services and were updated on the current minimum cost of a fully stocked ALS ambulance in the range of $120,000 with costs higher for newer equipment. A heart monitor costs in the neighborhood of $26,000 and with new advances in pre-hospital medical care, additional equipment becomes mandated on a regular basis, without financial support or provisions for supplemental monies.
Because of today’s economy, studies done relating to insurance coverage for residents of our area by the organizations have shown that approximately 66% of all patients served by the organizations represent under insured or uninsured individuals. Both organizations updated the supervisors on proposed Federal legislation that will impact the services of residents, in particular the elderly. Many patients covered by Medicare may find that the new regulations, if passed as proposed may limit the number of services allowed under their coverage for emergency medical services. Currently the reimbursements for Medicare have been lowered and most services are paid at a set rate, predetermined at the Federal level. Other significant expenses noted were those requiring new technology on the reporting side of the EMS services such as computers, programs and software updates.
Both agencies provide a significant amount of “goodwill” within the communities they serve through the write-off of unpaid services. Bushkill Emergency Corps alone wrote off about $600,000 during the past year, while Suburban numbers were very similar. Residents are encouraged to take advantage of these subscription programs by contacting their respective ambulance services. Simply contact their business offices,( Bushkill 570-223- 1906, Suburban 610-923-7500 ) provide your location and a subscription packet will be sent to you. The supervisors thanked both organizations for their continued services and for taking time to update them on their current service status.
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