The Pulaski County Commissioners have decided not to put more money into an ambulance that’s set to be replaced next year. EMS Director Bryan Corn told the commissioners Monday that the department’s oldest ambulance, a 2008 Ford which has had numerous problems over the years, is once again out of service.
The number of ambulance transfers provided by Pulaski County Emergency Medical Services increased significantly during the month of June. For the past several months, a shortage of paramedics had been causing the department to deny more transfer requests than it accepted. But EMS Director Bryan Corn says the numbers finally appear to be trending in the right direction, following the addition of two new paramedics.
Four people involved with a San Pierre ambulance service are among those facing criminal charges, following a nationwide crackdown on health care fraud. Edward T. Kerr Jr., Brenda Kerr, Mark K. Estrada, and Tammy Estrada are accused of submitting false claims to Medicare and Medicaid, leading to losses of over $100,000, according to a press release from U.S. Attorney Thomas Kirsch. The four were believed to be involved in the operation of United Mobile Care.
A nationwide crackdown on health care fraud has led to charges against two people involved with a Winamac ambulance service. Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill says his office’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit took part in 12 of those investigations in Indiana.
Two of Pulaski County’s ambulances are back in service, following recent repairs. EMS Director Bryan Corn told the county commissioners Monday that the truck that was damaged in an accident on Christmas Eve seems to be working fine now. “We’re using it. So far, we haven’t had any issues,” he said. Continue reading
Pulaski County continues to deal with ambulance issues. Last week, the county commissioners voted to let the EMS department spend nearly $2,800 to replace the fuel tank in its oldest truck.
The Starke County Commissioners asked the Starke County Council members for just over $142,000 in additional appropriations for capital projects in the CEDIT and Jail CEDIT funds.
Pulaski County EMS continues to deny most ambulance transfer requests from Pulaski Memorial Hospital, but EMS Director Bryan Corn expects that to change, as new paramedics are added to the department. He told the county commissioners Monday that his department denied all but one of the hospital’s 10 transfer requests during the month of April. Pulaski County EMS has decided not to take transfers when there’s only one paramedic on duty.
The Starke County Commissioners took time Monday night to discuss several capital projects on the schedule for this year.
The Culver Town Council members were set to open ambulance bids Tuesday night, but Town Manager Jonathan Leist said there weren’t any bids submitted.
After months of discussions, one of Pulaski County’s ambulances will be repaired, but now another one is out of service. That’s what EMS Director Bryan Corn told the county commissioners last week. He said the ambulance that was heavily damaged in an accident on Christmas Eve was in Iowa being repaired by its original builder. “The insurance company finally gave that the go-ahead for them to fix that,” Corn said. “That truck hopefully, according to Iowa, will be back to us sometime next week.”
The fate of one of Pulaski County’s ambulances remains up in the air. The ambulance was significantly damaged in an accident on Christmas Eve.
Pulaski County Emergency Medical Services may soon learn the fate of one of its ambulances. It was significantly damaged back in December, but the insurance provider was reluctant to send it back to Iowa, so the original builder could assess the damage.
The Culver Town Council members opened bids for surplus equipment at the street department and the ambulance during their meeting last week.
The highest bids were approved which included $2,900 for a 1999 leaf vac machine, $2,500 for the 1964 grader, $150 for the 1993 Patchman trailer, $1,500 for the 2000 Ford F-150, and $1,500 a 2000 Leeboy 300 roller. Utility Superintendent Bob Porter was pleased with the bids as they came in higher than he expected.
The Culver Town Council approved an ordinance amendment that increases the hourly wage for a new advanced paramedic to a range from $10.00 to $15.50 an hour beginning Nov. 1.
EMS Director Kathy Hart thanked the council and noted that the increase will help attract advanced paramedics to the department. She said several applicants have turned away from the position after learning that the wages aren’t comparable to other area departments. This will allow Culver EMS to be more competitive when seeking applications. Continue reading
Ambulance maintenance costs continue to add up for Pulaski County Emergency Medical Services.
Starke County EMS Director Travis Clary told the county commissioners this week that five part-time paramedics were recently hired and they are completing orientation. He hopes this will help cut down on overtime hours.
