The Westmont Village Board is considering a request to raise fees for ambulance calls for residents and nonresidents.
The Fire Department is looking to increase fees to average them out with nearby towns, and to include fees for child safety seat installation for nonresidents, said Deputy Fire Chief Dave Weiss.
No fees would be assessed for Fire Department calls under this proposal, only for ambulance and paramedic or emergency medical service calls, officials said.
The Westmont Village Board delayed a vote on the measure Nov. 2 for further discussion. Mayor William Rahn said the department needs time to gather more cost numbers, and taxpayers should have a chance to speak out on the matter before the board votes.
No indication has been given as to when that issue will come up again before the board. The issue is not on the agenda for the Thursday, Nov. 12, board meeting.
Under the proposal, the Fire Department would also increase fees for ambulance calls when they treat patients who refuse transport to a hospital, for which Weiss said the department is often not reimbursed.
The department also is looking to add a $20 fee for car seat installation for nonresidents, while residents would still not be charged for the service.
“We are now one of the only area communities that offers certified car seat installations, as most communities send their residents to our department for that now,” Weiss said.
The department had about 57 requests last year for nonresident car seat installation, Weiss said.
Fire Chief Frank Trout said each year, the department reviews its ambulance rates compared to nearby communities. He said the fee service is only charged to users, not to taxpayers, as other emergency services are charged.
“Since the cost is borne only by those who use the service, and not by taxpayers, we are able to keeps costs down,” he said.
Increases would also be seen on the cost of both what the department calls basic life support calls, when EKG machines and intravenous therapy, or drugs are not used, and on advanced life support calls, when those treatments are used.
Trout said the department operates on a $4 million annual budget, about half of which is for ambulance and emergency medical services. The department manages to collect only about 65 percent of ambulance call fees, because some people are unable to pay the fees.
While she said she understands the need for the increase, Village Trustee Ellen Emery said she has heard from residents concerned about the costs. One person, a 93- year-old neighbor, actually drove himself to the hospital to avoid the ambulance fees, she said.
“While our paramedics do a excellent job, I believe this kind of thing is happening more and more,” she said.
Emery said she would like to see the department waive fees for residents, where only nonresidents would have to pay for the calls, since many of those ambulance calls are often paid by insurance or Medicare benefits for residents who cannot afford the fees.
Trustee Lee Fleming agreed.
“Our residents deserve better than that,” he said.
But Rahn said offering free ambulance service is not a cost-effective practice, and too many people would take advantage of the system.
“We’d have people calling for ambulances for a headache or a sore finger,” he said. “It would be nice if we could afford that. But with all the cuts we have made in each department, we probably could not afford it.”
Proposed fee hikes
n Ambulance
RESIDENT $450; $20 increase proposed
NONRESIDENT $650; $100 increase proposed
n ALS-Advanced life support calls
RESIDENT $600; $200 increase proposed
NONRESIDENT $850; $150 increase proposed
n Other proposed fees:
$5 per mile mileage fee increase for ambulances
$200 charge for resident patients treated, but refusing hospital transport
$350 for nonresident patents treated, but refusing hospital transport
$20 Car seat installation fee for nonresidents
