Public support for EMS noted at meeting

With budget set, commissioners want to keep current contract going

A presentation by a representative from American Medical Response (AMR), a national medical transportation company, at Monday’s Jackson County Commission meeting sparked a flood of support for Jackson County EMS from community members and EMS staff members.

More than 50 people attended the commission meeting, which began with a 10-minute presentation by Jon Antrim, an AMR regional director out of Topeka. 

The county and Jackson County EMS are currently in the middle of a three-year contract, which includes a payment of $352,000 to Jackson County EMS each year in 2020, 2021 and 2022. 

Brent Teter and Jay Watkins, owners and operators of Jackson County EMS, met with the commissioners during three separate meetings in August in which they proposed replacing the current contract (which expires at the end of 2022) with a new three-year contract that asked for additional funding starting January 2022.

The first proposed contract included a $593,237 rate for ambulance services for 2022 (with a second ambulance fully staffed 60 hours a week), which would be a $241,237 increase (68.5 percent) from the current contract. The annual payment would then increase by $65,000 in 2023 and then by another $65,000 in 2024.

The second proposed contract included a $658,237 contract for ambulance services for 2022 (with a second ambulance fully staffed 84 hours a week), which would be $306,237 increase from the current contract. In that contract, a $65,000 increase was proposed for 2023 and another in 2024. 

To read the rest of the article, subscribe to The Holton Recorder. 

The Holton Recorder

109 W. Fourth St.
Holton, KS 66436
Phone: 785-364-3141
 

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