Starke County Commissioners Approve Purchase of Ambulance

The Starke County Commissioners are gearing up for the future needs of the EMS service in the county by considering the purchase of a new ambulance, or two quality used rigs. At a recent meeting, Commissioner Kathy Norem announced that because $250,000 is left from health insurance savings she would like to spend a portion of the money on ambulances and equipment for Advanced Life Service needs.

Councilman David Pearman commented on the issue that when county begins making ALS runs, that is going to open up a new revenue source, but at the same time there will be more activity for the rigs. Pearman also noted that there are many municipalities that are privatizing their ambulance service, so there as some quality used rigs available if they can just be found.

Commissioner Dan Bridegroom said that the ambulances the county currently owns need to be thoroughly checked for issues, but it’s hard to take them out of service to do so. Another issue is that with the older rigs, parts are not always available.

A motion was made to seek the transfer of the money for the purchase of the new rig or two used ones by Commissioner Jennifer Davis. The motion was approved unanimously.