Jan. 16--CLEARWATER -- A fire truck and an ambulance will no longer be the standard for low-priority medical 911 calls after Pinellas County commissioners Tuesday narrowly approved changes to the county's EMS system.
Beginning June 1, the county's 911 dispatchers will only send an ambulance to about 14,000 low-priority calls classified as "falls" and "sick persons."
But don't be surprised to see a fire truck there, too. After a public outcry from several fire districts, county officials agreed to continue relaying low-priority calls to local fire stations and give fire districts leeway to decide if they want to respond.
That concession, and commissioners' decision to delay implementation until June, may have averted a legal showdown with the City of St. Petersburg, whose leaders threatened to sue the county if it did not wait for the results of a study into overhauling the county's EMS system.
The rising cost of providing emergency medical services has become a serious concern for the county, which was forced to dip into its reserve fund to cover costs, according to County Administrator Robert LaSala.
Commissioners hope lowering the number of calls will result in long-term savings because fire districts would go longer before needing to replace trucks.
The county pays roughly $40 million to fire districts to double as medical first responders on roughly 140,000 medical-emergency 911 calls each year. Every fire vehicle that responds to a call has at least one firefighter trained as a paramedic. The system is funded through a special property tax.
"I know there is some apprehension about this; but it's a good idea, and we are going to start reining in some costs," said Commissioner John Morroni. "We need to get the ball rolling."
About 10 senior fire district officials attended the meeting, voicing their concern that 911 callers would wait longer for crucial medical treatment if firefighters didn't respond.
The ambulance-only response would be used for minor "emergencies," such as residents complaining of symptoms such as nausea, sleeplessness, earaches and other mild ailments. The same service would be provided to victims of falls who call more than six hours after or if their injuries are limited to their limbs.
But fire chiefs warn that callers are not always aware of the severity of their injuries.
That was the case Monday, when first-responders drove without sirens to check on a 2-year-old boy who had fallen out of his bunk bed, said Robert Polk, fire chief of the Pinellas Suncoast Fire and Rescue District.
When paramedics arrived, they found out the boy had a broken limb.
"Maybe it happens every day, maybe it doesn't, but the system is not perfect," Polk said. "Our philosophy has always been the closest paramedic, to every call, every time."
County officials, though, say fire trucks respond to too many minor calls and may be busy when more urgent calls arise.
Bruce Moeller, the county's public safety director, said fire stations are unavailable as much as 15 percent of the time because of calls or training.
"We trying to build capacity back into the system," he said.
Commission Chairman Kenneth Welch, one of three commissioners who voted against the change, said pressing ahead over the objections of fire districts and several cities could mean little or no cooperation when the EMS study by Fitch and Associates is completed in the summer.
"What does this buy us now except lawsuits and taking us off the path to the real goal, which is redesigning the system?" Welch asked.
St. Petersburg Mayor Bill Foster, who earlier threatened to sue the county if it went ahead, said Tuesday afternoon that the delayed deadline may provide enough time for all parties to review the study.
"We've got four and a half months to figure this one out," Foster said. "The whole thing could change before June 1."
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