EMS authorities propose millages in Michigan cities

With the August primary election approaching, cities and towns across Michigan are increasingly adopting tax increases to support libraries, school districts and local police.

Local emergency medical services (EMS) organizations are also renewing or creating tax proposals to help them continue operating. Currently, 16 Michigan counties have an ambulance or EMS tax on their ballots this year, including Alpena, Montmorency and Presque Isle counties in northeast Michigan.

Currently, emergency medical services are recognized as an essential service in 13 states, meaning that these states consider them a basic public need, along with police, fire, and hospitals. Michigan is not one of these states.

According to the Michigan Journal of Economics, emergency medical services are reportedly “victims of underfunding” as they struggle to secure funding and reimbursement for treatment and transportation.

Justin Rogers is the director and education coordinator for the Ogemaw County EMS Authority in West Branch. The county is one of many proposing a new tax to support their emergency services, with the maximum target being 0.5 per thousand, which would cost the owner of a $100,000 home about $25 a year.

Rogers said his department regularly faces issues securing funding and inadequate reimbursement.

“Reimbursement from Medicare and Medicaid, our largest payer, has not kept pace with the rising costs of rescue equipment, ambulances, medical supplies and other equipment we need to do our work,” Rogers said. “In order to maintain this equipment and be able to update and replace it, we must look for alternative ways.”

The West Branch location is the only ambulance service in Ogemaw County. Its closest neighbor is about 30 minutes away in Denton Township. Although the town has its own hospital, there have been cases where ambulances have had to take patients as far away as Grand Rapids or Detroit, Rogers said.

This is a common problem for emergency medical services in rural Michigan, according to the Michigan Association for Ambulance Services (MAAS). The association said the state’s geography, limited access to public transportation, long travel times and road conditions are all barriers to providing healthcare in rural areas.

MAAS has also spoken publicly about government underfunding and budget problems in emergency services.

“EMS is a life-and-death job that must continue,” wrote Angela Madden, executive director of the association, in a statement. “Michigan’s hard-working paramedics and EMTs deserve to be fairly paid for the work they do. It is beyond frustrating when pet projects are funded while EMS is left in the lurch.”

Rogers said if voters approve the tax increase, the funds would be used to improve medical equipment. He said a new ambulance would be ideal, but they are also looking into purchasing new stretchers and heart monitors.

“The lifespan of many of our devices is seven years according to the manufacturer,” he said. “Many of our devices are approaching that time frame or even exceeding it by quite a bit. These devices are at a point where the cost of replacement compared to the cost of maintenance… It is more profitable to replace (these parts).”