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EMS privatization didn’t work out
As published in the Daily News
Tomie Lunsford
June 22, 2005
Privatization has not been a great model for providing
emergency medical services in Galveston County.
Eighteen months ago, public officials were talking about the savings that would
be realized when GoldStar took over for Rural Metro. Rural Metro, citing low
revenues, was not interested in restructuring its contract to provide service to
central Galveston County.
Some company officials said at the time they had bid the contract on the low side. They were not
interested in submitting a lower bid. GoldStar’s bid was breathtakingly
low. But GoldStar, which is seeking bankruptcy protection, was not completely
healthy financially.
Public officials were in court Friday, trying to make sure the company’s ambulances stayed in the county — at
least until another service could be put in place. Officials reassured the
public there would be no disruption of service. But it would be a mistake to
keep looking for a private company to provide an essential service.
Companies that desperately need additional revenue will
continue to submit low bids. The low costs look good. But this is not a recipe
for ensuring that a large part of the county has reliable, stable service.
Several systems are in place in the county.
The area that has been served by private companies takes
in Texas City, La Marque, Dickinson and Hitchcock, as well as some
unincorporated areas. League City and Santa Fe operate their own ambulance
services. Four volunteer fire departments serve the Bolivar Peninsula. Galveston
has its own service, operated through the county health district.
The mainland cities that are looking for a long-term solution
have three options:
- Texas City, the largest city in the mid-county belt,
could set up its own system. It might then contract with other communities
for service.
- The cities in the area and the county could contract
with the health district to provide the services.
- These governments could set up an emergency medical
services district to provide the service.
Although talks are just getting started, there’s a good
argument for creating a district to provide this service. It would take a vote
of the people to do that. And those same people will pay the bills. One reason we have gotten to the point where we are today is that everyone wants
reliable, stable service. But we’ve never focused on the key question: Who will
pay for it? Creating a district would allow voters to look at the proposed
services and the costs. They’d decide the key question.
For
More Information Contact:
Brian Rutherford
Public Health Planner
Galveston County Health District
(409) 938-2275
brutherford@gchd.org
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