City, county near deal on ambulance responses for non-emergencies

The city and county are nearing a solution to make sure ambulances respond to non-emergency calls within an hour virtually every time.

But Sedgwick County and Wichita leaders put off a final vote for a new EMS contract until next month.

The county runs Emergency Medical Services and the city contracts with it for ambulance service. At a rare joint meeting on Wednesday, they agreed to move a deadline for terminating the contract from July 1 to Aug. 1.

The main point of contention is how quickly ambulances respond to non-emergency calls, those for patients who aren’t in crisis but need medical care while moving between facilities such as hospitals, rehabilitation facilities or nursing homes.

The county does 98 percent of those transports within one hour. But city leaders say private ambulance companies could potentially respond more quickly.

“Our charge is to make life better for all citizens,” said council member Bryan Frye. “It’s good enough for 98 percent but not for the other 2 percent.”

The county is skeptical about privatization, which would give up some of those trips. Commissioner David Dennis touted the 98 percent rate and said third-party vendors could not be held as accountable.

“Their purpose is to make money,” Dennis said. “Our purpose is to provide service.”

County officials tentatively agreed to keep responding to every call and keep at least 98 percent of those transports within an hour. For calls that could take more than an hour, the county will refer to a list of private ambulance companies and call them to see whether they would be faster. The county would maintain the exclusive right to manage that system.

The two sides closed in on that understanding after an hour of discussion, but some council members wanted to see the changes in writing. Commissioners and council members approved the extension of discussions by an 11-1 vote.

Council member James Clendenin, the lone “no” vote, said residents “should have the choice to call whoever they want for a ride.”

“I want the citizen sitting there, waiting, to have the option if they’re in that 2 percent that’s not going to be … gotten to in an hour,” he said.

Sedgwick County Commission Chairman Dave Unruh said city leaders “see the wisdom in having a single provider have full responsibility for ambulance service.”

“I think we’re all ready to sign off on it,” he said. “This gave an opportunity for everybody to verbalize their questions and challenges. But I believe we’re on the same page and ready to go forward.”

This story was originally published June 28, 2017 at 4:49 PM with the headline "City, county near deal on ambulance responses for non-emergencies."