Allen County is one of four agents Iola council members will consider Thursday evening to do its ambulance billing. COMMISSIONERS agreed to a second joint meeting with Iola council members on Feb. 4 starting at 6 p.m. at the Creitz Recital Hall in the Bowlus Fine Arts Center to discuss a merger of the two ambulance services.
A change from in-house billing is being contemplated because Iola’s success rate in collecting on bills from ambulance runs is less than 50 percent, Carl Slaugh, city administrator, told county commissioners Tuesday morning. Terry Call, who has collected the county’s bills since there was one ambulance service, has a much better record, collecting between 70 and 75 percent of what is owed.
The county would charge 8 percent for collections. The other three proposals, all made by private collection companies, include fees of 10-, 8- and 7.75 percent.
The county’s offer initially had to gain traction with county commissioners.
Commissioner Rob Francis said at first he had reservations because Call also does mapping for 911 service, including periodic updating, and that he thought that function should be his primary responsibility without interference from additional ambulance billing.
Call agreed city billing would add to his duties, but thought it wouldn’t be a burden.
“And, we could get him some help,” probably cross-training with other personal in his office, said Sheriff Tom Williams. Call is stationed in the sheriff’s office.
“I think we should do it, even if it does put you (Call) out a little,” said Commissioner Gary McIntosh. “I think eventually we will have one ambulance service again. If we could get together with the city (on billing), I think it would be a definite positive.”
“I think it’s doable,” Call said, allowing that adding the city to his workload would require a $1,000 software upgrade and an additional $100 a year for computer maintenance.
“Some weeks I do the county’s billing in a couple of days, but there are times it takes longer when I run into problems,” Call said.
The city’s ambulance bills total between $300,000 and $400,000 a year, from about 900 calls. Last year Call billed $1.1 million for 1,330 runs made by county ambulances. The difference in per-run average cost is that most county runs cover a longer distance, including transfers to metropolitan hospitals.
If Iola’s council members pick the county as Iola’s bill collector, commissioners said they then would work out details of a contract.
Slaugh said Fred Heismeyer, who moderated the first meeting, would do the same in February. Heismeyer will take recommendations from both governing bodies to put together an agenda and formulate the direction the talks will take.
Iola considers county to handle collections
