County, hospital hammer out new EMS deal

By Jessica Waters
The Toccoa Record
Thursday, July 9, 2009 3:23 PM EDT

With unanimous agreement from both boards only days before the contract expired, Stephens County and the Stephens County Hospital Authority recently approved a new, five-year contract for emergency medical services.

Representatives from both sides of the table indicated an overall satisfaction with the new contract, which remains essentially the same as the prior contract, barring three significant changes.

As under the prior contracts, Stephens County will continue to pay Stephens County Hospital a management fee to operate the EMS service.

This year, the fee will top $593,000 – an amount that is adjusted yearly based on the consumer price index. One difference in the new contract is that, unlike in prior years, there is a cap of five percent on the fee adjustment.

If the consumer price index rises or falls more than five percent over the prior year, the management fee adjustment will be capped at five percent in either direction, said Ed Gambrel, hospital administrator.

The county will provide fuel, tires and maintenance for all EMS vehicles, as well as securing insurance coverage for the fleet. Unlike the prior contract, there is no cap on the dollar level the county is responsible for in relation to these items.

In return, the contract stipulates that Stephens County Hospital will continue to pay for EMS employee salaries and benefits, housing and utilities, supplies and medical equipment. SCH will also fund maintenance of EMS facilities.

As with the prior contract, the new contract is for a period of five years.

In the recently-signed contract, however, there is a clause allowing either party to dissolve the contract with a one-year notice.

“We are happy with this (contract),” said Stephens County Commission chairman Harold Andrews. “It has been a good partnership and I look for it to continue to be.”

“The county has been under a lot of pressure with their budget and everything that is going on economically, but I think we’ve come to a good agreement ,” agreed Gambrell, saying neither taxpayers nor clients will see a recognizable difference in the EMS services offered in Stephens County.

“Everything will be about the same, except for those small issues we needed to get resolved,” he said.