Township Council gave the go-ahead to draw up specifications and go out to bid for emergency medical care at the council’s Feb. 6 meeting.
By: Lea Kahn
Officials are edging closer to deciding whether to hire additional emergency medical technicians or an outside ambulance service to provide around-the-clock emergency medical care for the township.
Township Council gave the go-ahead to Municipal Manager Richard Krawczun to draw up specifications and go out to bid for emergency medical care at the council’s Feb. 6 meeting.
Five members of the 15-member Lawrence Township First Aid Squad, who were sitting in the audience last week, appeared stunned by the council’s decision and expressed concern that they are being cut out.
But Municipal Manager Richard Krawczun said after the meeting it is "premature" to say whether the volunteers would be left out. Depending on the outcome of the bid process, there may be a role for the squad members if they have adequate manpower, he said.
"When we finalize the bid specifications, consideration will be given to the squad if they can assemble a crew to answer second calls," Mr. Krawczun said. The squad would be called in to answer a second call for help while the paid EMTs are handling the first call, he said.
Township Council’s action grew from the all-volunteer first aid squad’s inability to field EMT crews overnight and on weekends because of a lack of volunteers. There are eight certified volunteer EMTs and four who are enrolled in a 120-hour EMT class.
The squad has had difficulty fielding crews since July, when a group of volunteer EMTs walked out because of apparent personal disagreements. The squad now staffs crews Tuesday and Wednesday from 6 p.m. to midnight, and Thursday from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.
Since the walkout, the township’s four paid EMTs cover daytime hours seven days a week. The township has hired EMTs to cover the evening hours on a per diem, or daily, basis, when the volunteer EMTs are unavailable.
Last week, Mr. Krawczun told Township Council that it does not have to abide by state public contracting laws and award a contract to the lowest bidder. He proposed using a different method called competitive contracting allowed by state law which would allow for a side-by-side comparison of bidders.
Once the specifications are drawn up, it will be put out to bid, Mr. Krawczun said. Private companies may bid and the township’s paid EMTs also may bid as a unit because they are represented by a bargaining agent, or union, he said.
Mr. Krawczun said it would take some time to draw up the specifications. He told the council that the bid specifications would include a provision that the successful bidder would keep an ambulance and two EMTs in the township around the clock.
As an alternative, the successful bidder would provide an ambulance and two EMTs weekday evenings and on the weekends, he said. The township’s paid EMTs would cover daytime hours on weekdays.
"Once the bids are received, they would be evaluated and ranked and given to Township Council for its consideration," he said. "The lowest bidder may not get the contract. We may want a company that has certain equipment or experience. Experience and access to equipment may be (more) important than price."
Mr. Krawczun said competitive contracting would allow township officials to get a true comparison of hiring a private ambulance company to work days and nights, or hiring additional paid EMTs to work around the clock. Another option is to keep the township’s paid EMTs and hire a private ambulance company to fill in when they are not working, he said.
The emergency medical services must be staffed around the clock, Mr. Krawczun said. Lawrence Township has about 30,000 residents in the 22.5-square-mile municipality, he said.
"It’s a tremendous burden on a volunteer squad that is not having a high degree of membership at the moment to provide emergency medical services to the residents of Lawrence Township," he said.
"This is in no way a negative view of the squad," he said. "The volunteers are attempting to do (what they can). Unfortunately, circumstances are forcing this decision. We have to provide emergency medical services in the future."
The Lawrence Township First Aid Squad volunteers who attended the meeting appeared to be stunned and upset at Township Council’s decision to allow Mr. Krawczun to take steps to seek bids.
The council’s action is "demoralizing," said volunteer Barbara McVeety. The volunteers are fine to answer calls until the township is ready to replace them with paid EMTs, she said.
"We’re getting run out of town on a rail," said volunteer EMT Dean Acquaviva, a former chief of the Lawrence Township First Aid Squad who serves on the group’s board of directors.
"They are making it so we don’t have any purpose," he said. "It sounds like the council is at the point where it is ready to implement (a paid service). We are not going anywhere. We are on duty tonight."

