Tulsa Joins Oklahoma City in Continuing with EMSA

TULSA -- Residents in Tulsa and Oklahoma City will continue to be served by the Emergency Medical Services Authority when they call 911 for an ambulance.

Tulsa Mayor Kathy Taylor announced Thursday she will continue the trust agreement her city has with Oklahoma City and EMSA.

Oklahoma City officials already have approved continuing the authority, which was created in 1977.

"Without question, my top priority is quality of care," Taylor said. "I refuse to compromise in any way the care Tulsans receive from emergency medical providers. With EMSA and the Tulsa Fire Department working together as first responders, we can continue to deliver the highest-quality emergency medical services possible."

Earlier, fire department officials from both cities said they could take over ambulance services. Taylor met with advisers and local mayors for several months to consider the next step.

In the end, a report by a commission that Taylor put together showed the fire department could maintain ambulance service for $26.8 million from July 1, 2007 to June 30, 2013. The cost to continue using EMSA was $23.8 million.

"When you look at it, EMSA was undoubtedly the better deal," said Tina Wells, EMSA spokeswoman. "But really, this is more than dollars and cents; this is about people's lives."

The deal apparently is better for Oklahoma City, too, where savings for the next five years amounted to $1.7 million.

Oklahoma City Mayor Mick Cornett called Taylor's announcement "good news."

"The citizens are pleased with the level of ambulance care we get from EMSA," Cornett said. "If it wasn't working, we would be more likely to try something else."

EMSA provides service for 1.1 million residents in the Tulsa and Oklahoma City areas. The trust will continue until 2013.

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