A6 BAKER CITY HERALD • THURSDAY, APRIL 14, 2022
LOCAL
Ambulance
fighting staff by about half,
from 12 in the current budget
(although two positions are va-
Editor’s note: Baker City Councilor Shane Alderson read this letter, submitted
cant now) to six shift workers,
by the firefighters union, during the April 12 City Council meeting:
along with a full-time assistant
The decision to possibly end the transport comes at a tremendous
chief and a chief who would
risk and cost to the residents who have relied on the Baker City Fire-
work three-quarters time.
fighters for many years. The decision to end ambulance transport
Cannon wrote that on aver-
opens the area to outside influence for private, for-profit ambulance
age, the department responds
companies. They make money off of taking people to the hospital.
to 14 structure fires per year.
Private Ambulance Companies, specifically MetroWest and AMR
“Typically, occupants of
Ambulance have a long history of taking over ambulance service
buildings have already evacu-
areas in the name of profits. In Washington County, the Oregon
Coast, Southern Oregon, Marion County, and attempts in Clacka-
ated and therefore rescue opera-
mas County, MetroWest will present themselves as the lowest price
tions are not frequent,” Cannon
provider in the attempt to win the contract. Once the contract is
wrote. “The remainder of calls
secure, Metro will operate to maximize profits. They will promise
the fire department responds to
on response standards, but constantly fail to meet those standards,
include fire alarms, fire inspec-
seeking exemptions for not meeting contract stipulations. Metro
tions, and non-structure fires.”
will utilize the least number of ambulances possible with minimal
Casey Johnson, president
staffing. There is no planning for spikes in call volume and will often
of the local union chapter that
force the public agencies to take fire apparatus out of service to staff
represents city firefighters, said
ambulances. This lack of ambulances to meet demand will also cause
recently that he’s concerned
firefighters to remain on scene longer and not available for additional
that with just two firefighters
fire and rescue responses.
on duty per shift, situations
After a few years, Metro will then begin to incrementally raise
could arise when firefighters
transport fees charged to patient’s and insurance companies. So
would not be able to enter a
what started as the lowest cost provider, soon that provider becomes
burning building because they
one of the highest costing providers. Often times, there is little the
lacked a two-person backup
oversight agencies can do to control these costs.
crew as city policy requires.
The Baker City Firefighters have been able to meet the needs of
Cannon also wrote in his
our community. We’ve been able to do it as public workers and not a
report that he does not expect
for profit system that prioritizes profits over patient care.
the city’s Insurance Services
In shopping out this ambulance contract to a Portland based
company, we will lose half of our dual role firefighters available for
Office rating — which some
not only fighting structure fires to preserve life and property, but to
insurance companies use to
perform vehicle extrication, mitigate hazardous materials dangers,
determine homeowner insur-
perform public safety education, CPR classes, and engage in our
ance rates and whether to pro-
community. We will lose a home grown professional service and re-
vide coverage — would drop
vert back to a staffing model that was established in 1909 when fire
by more than one level, from
response was by horse drawn cart.
the current 3 to 4, and possibly
I will leave you with this: is this the right decision for our commu-
would not change at all if the
nity? Will this BENEFIT or HAMPER the safety of our citizens? If not
staffing cuts are made.
resolved, is this drastic decrease in fire service what any of you would
Cannon also told council-
want for safety of your families and your domain?
ors
that he has concerns about
I urge city council and county commissioners to work hard to
some
aspects of the new am-
come to an agreement that will maintain services without any de-
bulance service area ordinance
crease in service to our constituents in the short term, so then we
that county commissioners are
can build a better system for the future benefit of citizens of Baker
working on.
County and Baker City.
One of those is giving the
county the authority to change
the size of an ambulance ser-
for about 20% of the total.
uary 2023 and need to notify
vice area.
But Cannon said the city
the county again that the city
“If the county so chose, this
can’t continue ambulance ser- intended to discontinue ambu-
could be construed to say they
vice if the county’s contribution lance service.
could increase that area and
is based solely on an estimate of
Councilor Joanna Dixon
how many ambulance runs are said that although the last thing then we would have to cover
it for the same costs we’re cur-
outside the city.
she wants is for the city to lay
rently covering it,” Cannon said.
He also told councilors that off firefighters, “in all good
He said he’s also concerned
given recent increases in the
conscience I cannot continue
about the possibility of the
number of ambulance calls,
with these kinds of losses to
the city is nearing a “threshold” the citizens of Baker. In essence county being able to suspend
or revoke the assignment of an
at which it might need to hire
we’re going to bankrupt the
ambulance provider after find-
an additional three firefighter/ city, and we can’t do that.”
paramedics to maintain ser-
In a report to councilors for ing that the provider has will-
fully violated provisions of the
vice levels. That could increase Tuesday’s meeting, Cannon
the fire department’s person-
wrote that the city is preparing service area plan.
“If they deem that we vio-
nel costs by approximately
to transition the fire depart-
lated the provision of the plan,
$300,000 to $350,000.
ment from its current status,
any state or federal law and reg-
He said that with a $150,000 responding to both fires and
ulation then they can come in
county contribution, the city,
ambulance calls, to a “single
if it continued ambulance ser- role department” dealing only and bring in another provider
and we pay the bill. That gives
vices after Sept. 30, likely would with fires.
me great concern,” he said.
be in a similar situation in Jan-
The city would cut its fire-
Letter from Baker City firefighters union
Continued from Page A1
During Tuesday’s meeting,
councilors discussed both the
financial challenges and their
desire to avoid layoffs in the
fire department.
City and county exchange
correspondence
State law does not require the
county to contribute financially
to the ambulance providers it
chooses. City Manager Jona-
than Cannon told councilors
during their March 22 meeting
that the city can’t afford to con-
tinue to operate ambulances
based on its financial situation.
Cannon wrote in a report to
councilors that the difference
between what the city bills for
ambulance runs, and what it
actually collects, could “ap-
proach a million dollars a year
in the very near future.”
The city has not historically
broken even with ambulance
billing, in large part because
most of the patients the city
bills are covered by either
Medicare or Medicaid, and
those federal programs pay
only about 20% of the city’s
actual costs.
Councilors on Tuesday
went over records showing
that the gap between what the
city spent for ambulance ser-
vice and what it collected from
bills ranged from $587,000 to
$859,000 over the past five fis-
cal years. The projected differ-
ence for the current fiscal year
is about $581,000.
Baker County has budgeted
a contribution to the city of
$100,000 for the current fis-
cal year, after paying the city
$99,000 over the previous
three years.
On April 6, county commis-
sioners voted to offer the city
$150,000 for the fiscal year that
starts July 1.
That’s $20,000 more than the
county had proposed this win-
ter, in response to the city’s pro-
posed contract, which called
for a county contribution of
$137,000.
County officials failed, how-
ever, to send that offer to the
city prior to the City Council’s
March 22 meeting, at which
councilors decided to set the
Sept. 30, 2022, ultimatum for
ending ambulance service.
During Tuesday’s meet-
ing, Councilor Jason Spriet
Jayson Jacoby/Baker City Herald
Baker City Fire Department firefighter/paramedics David Van Dyke,
left, and Patrick Foss in one of the department’s ambulances on
Tuesday, April 12, 2022.
asked Cannon whether the
city would have accepted the
$130,000 offer — just $7,000
less than the city had proposed
— had the county actually sent
the offer.
Cannon told Spriet that at
that point the city wouldn’t have
had a reason not to accept the
offer. Cannon noted, though,
that if the city had done so, sub-
sequent financial projections
showing a larger loss in the am-
bulance service would have put
the city in a “very difficult” po-
sition, having accepted a county
offer that wasn’t enough to
meet the city’s needs.
ics, be vaccinated against
COVID-19, with a goal of
keeping the fire department
staff intact. Yet now the city
is preparing to lay off half of
those employees.
“If we can figure out where
to get the money I want to push
forward and keep these guys
working,” Alderson said.
Councilor Johnny Wag-
goner Sr. said he’s concerned
about how the loss of Baker
City Fire Department am-
bulance service would affect
emergency responders in ru-
ral parts of the county.
“I don’t think anyone realizes
all we’re about to lose if we lose
Council ponders financial
the Baker City ambulances,”
Waggoner said.
challenges, effects on fire
Cannon responded that the
department
Alderson said he’s worried
county is legally responsible to
that if the county has to replace find a different ambulance pro-
the city fire department with a vider if the city ends its service,
private ambulance company,
and that he believes the county
the private firm’s employees
could find a quality private
would have trouble finding
company to do the work.
housing given the costs and
Commissioners derived their
lack of supply.
current $150,000 offer based
Alderson pointed out that
on the city’s estimates that its
last fall the city was “fighting
ambulance service shortfall will
the governor” on a mandate
total about $750,000 next fiscal
that health care workers, in-
year, and that ambulance runs
cluding firefighter/paramed-
outside the city limits account
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