Comment by Dan Orr on May 6, 2011 at 4:33pm

Just curious, since our property taxes, etc. pay for police and fire services why is there an extra charge?  (And, no wisecracks about this question being self-serving just because I have "frequent flyer" miles with the fire department's ambulance service.)

Comment by Mayor Casey Tanaka on May 6, 2011 at 5:52pm

Even though property taxes and other sources of revenue help to fund essential services like police and fire, the costs involved in responding to emergency medical calls is high. Insurance companies recognize this and reimburse cities for the costs of stabilizing patients, transporting them, and administering medicines to them, especially in light of how expensive it is to provide these services from trained professionals. When a patient does not have medical insurance or simply cannot afford this fee, it is often waived by Coronado's Fire Chief. Coronado is attempting to recover more of the costs involved in providing this service, and in lean years like the present, this will help keep Coronado away from deficit spending or from reducing the availability of expensive services like this one.

Comment by Jim Fader on May 9, 2011 at 11:46am

A thousand bucks for an ambulance ride is pretty typical. I don't think the city is "getting rich" off of it. The response time here for emergency services in Coronado is the best I have ever seen too.

Comment by MIKE GAPP on May 9, 2011 at 5:42pm

I support this move.

 

If anyone has a hard time paying for their ambulance ride, I think we can probably figure something out as a community to help them, per review of each instance.

 

Mike Gapp

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