BY KATHY CHANG
Staff Writer
HELMETTA — Officials are in discussion about renegotiating the borough’s shared service agreement with Spotswood for emergency medical services.
Currently, officials said they have budgeted approximately $15,000 in the proposed 2016 budget, which they are expecting to adopt in May.
“This is a huge public safety concern,” Councilman President Peter Karczewski said at the April 28 council meeting.
Officials said the quoted price for the EMS service is $37,000, $4,000 more than what they paid last year for the service.
“This is a drastic change,” Karczewski said.
The service includes soft billing for residents as opposed to hard billing.
“Soft billing benefits the residents. … If the resident has limited or no insurance, they would ride the ambulance for free,” Karczewski said.
Officials said Spotswood EMS responded to 143 calls last year in the borough.
Mayor Christopher Slavicek said the $37,000 is way over what they have proposed to budget.
“We need to negotiate,” he said.
In February, the Spotswood Borough Council voted down an ordinance to abolish the borough-owned ambulance service and threw out all bids to outsource the Spotswood EMS. The council had held a public hearing on a plan to abolish the service, citing health insurance costs under the Affordable Care Act.
The Spotswood Council now is in discussion of a possible ballot question in November to keep the Spotswood EMS service.