Voluntary fee pitched as possible remedy for pricey ambulance rides

Feb. 02--SHALIMAR -- A voluntary insurance pool in which members pay an annual fee could alleviate the sticker shock induced by the cost of an Okaloosa County EMS Division ambulance ride.

In a nutshell, that's the year-long-in-the-making idea of County Commission Chairwoman Carolyn Ketchel and county Director of Public Safety Alvin Henderson, who shared it at Tuesday's commission workshop on the needs of the EMS division. Deputy County Administrator Kay Godwin on Wednesday said county staff aims to provide more details about the suggested ambulance insurance program at the commission's Feb. 21 meeting.

At Tuesday's workshop, Ketchel and Henderson described the program as an annual subscription service. Each voluntary participant would pay an annual fee of perhaps $50, and with enough people in the insurance pool, their combined contributions would cover the cost of their ambulance trips each year, Ketchel said.

"It's voluntary. That's the key word," she said. "If you've got TRICARE for Life (health insurance for honorably discharged military members), you don't pay for an ambulance ride." But "many of us who have commercial insurance, including all the county employees, if they call an ambulance, it's $800."

Commission Vice Chairman Graham Fountain asked if the program would be administered through a direct service/non-profit organization or the county.

In Florida, "It appears we would have to have a licensed insurance agent provide this service for us," Henderson said. "There may or may not be a cost associated with that, dependent upon how we handle that -- coming internally, contracted or through an outside organization."

Ketchel said the program is "worth looking at, because if you have commercial insurance, you have to meet your deductible and co-pay. And it's $800 per ambulance ride. There might be a minimum paid for that, like $200 (covered by a private insurer), but you're stuck with a $600 bill. And we have call after call, week after week, where people say, 'I can't afford this.'"

Although payment plans are available for those facing the high ambulance bills, people who are on fixed incomes or rely on Social Security have a tough time paying the tab, Ketchel said.

Such voluntary insurance programs are used in several northern sates to help fund fire-rescue and EMS services, Henderson said.

"It's not where you're taxing, but it's just people who are donating to that operation to enhance the service they receive," he said.

Commissioner Nathan Boyles, however, said he did not want to discuss the program at the workshop. Among other concerns, he said it was unclear that the program was even a part of the workshop agenda. And Fountain said he wouldn't be in favor of direct-mail solicitations that seek donations for such a subscription service.

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