Allen County commissioners signed on to a new ambulance contract with the City of Iola, but not without some new concerns in light of a recent criminal case.
Commissioner Jerry Daniels said he’d like to see cameras installed in ambulances after reports emerged last week that an Iola paramedic was charged with three counts of sexual assault while on the job in December 2022.
The paramedic is no longer employed by the city.
Daniels noted a proposal from a private EMS service provider included cameras in ambulances. Commissioner Bruce Symes, however, said he wasn’t sure if that meant dash-cam recorders or inside the patient compartment. He was concerned medical privacy laws might restrict the ability to record, and more research is needed.
Daniels said he was concerned the incident was not brought to commissioners’ attention during negotiations. However, he said he had confidence in EMS Director Corey Isbell to handle the situation.
“I’m sure (city officials) are as concerned as we are and I have faith in the chief. I’m sure they’re working on mitigation,” he said.
Commissioners also talked about how to pay the increased costs. The new contract calls for the county to chip in $1,945,250, up from the $1.691 million paid this year.
Daniels suggested a special work session for commissioners to determine how they would pay for it.
FOR THE most part, commissioners said they were pleased with the new contract.
It addressed their top concerns:
They wanted Advanced Life Support (ALS) services. The city had planned to downgrade to a lesser level of services but agreed to provide ALS.
The county wanted staff at ambulance barns in Humboldt and Moran as well as Iola. The city agreed.
Communication has often been lacking between the two entities, so the city agreed to provide regular reports to commissioners.
Though commissioners weren’t happy about the price increase, they said they understood EMS is a costly venture. They were pleased to continue working with the city, which allows the county to continue to collect revenue from insurance reimbursements. Last year, that amount was around $800,000.
“Let’s consider from this point forward, this is a new relationship,” Symes said.
