City administrators and staff have a week to draw up a contract for emergency ambulance services with Gold Cross EMS, so Augusta commissioners can review it at the next Public Safety Committee meeting.
After an hour of discussion Tuesday, triggered by Commissioner Alvin Mason’s motion to replace the city’s current memorandum of understanding with Gold Cross with a formal contract, commissioners voted 7-1-2 for the motion.
Commissioners Jordan Johnson, Catherine McKnight, Sean Frantom, Brandon Garrett, Francine Scott, John Clarke and Mason voted for the motion. Commissioner Dennis Williams voted against it, and Mayor Pro Tem Bobby Williams and Commissioner Ben Hasan abstained.
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The Regional EMS Council designated Gold Cross as the sole provider of emergency ambulance services for Richmond County in 2014, which means the city cannot contract with other providers.
A substitute motion by Hasan for the administration to come up with a formal contract in 30 days failed with Johnson, Williams, Hasan and Scott voting for it, and Mason abstaining.
Before proposing a contract to replace the current agreement which ends Dec. 31, Mason said he wants to change the way Augusta-Richmond County is viewed about how it does business, especially in terms of its ambulance services.
“What we currently have in place is a memorandum of understanding, and that memorandum does not address the type of accountability that we need for this government and for our citizens, specifically the number of ambulances to be covering the area, the reporting mechanism in concert with 911,” Mason said.
“What we have is a situation where we cannot enforce, or we’re not contractually legally obligated to be able to have the type of accountability with this MOU and MOA,” Mason continued. ”In my professional opinion as a certified contract management operations specialist, I believe we ought to contract with Gold Cross with a specific amount of years, with a specific amount of pay, for a specific amount of time.”
The contract should also ensure accountability, which the current agreements do not guarantee, Mason said.
“We want to address the accountability piece first and foremost,” he said. “And the way to address the accountability piece and have it enforced legally and binding is through a contract.”
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Bobby Williams said he wasn’t against Gold Cross but was a little leery of paying Gold Cross $1.8 million for emergency ambulance services, which is a million more than the city is paying now.
Mason said his number is $1.6 million, but that it was $1.4 million when he was on the commission in 2012.
Commissioner John Clarke said it was time to move on a contract because time was growing short.
Dennis Williams said commissioners continue to get complaints about Gold Cross’ response time.
“We’re not paying them for ambulances,” he said. “We’re paying them for taking care of our indigent population.”
Williams also took issue with increasing Gold Cross’ $800,000 subsidy.
“I cannot see paying $1.5 million for indigent care in Augusta,” he said.
Commissioner Sean Frantom said all commissioners have done is play politics with Gold-Cross and the ambulance situation.
“They had a computer in the 911 center,” he said. “We didn’t turn it on. My understanding is they’re not getting paid for 40 percent of indigents in Richmond County.”
Commissioner Catherine McKnight said Augusta is having more accidents, more crime and more people getting shot.
“I’m all behind supporting my colleague Mason 100 percent,” she said.
Hasan said a commission sub-committee he chaired did a study of Gold Cross focusing on response time, accountability. Commissioners also allowed Gold Cross to increase transportation fees and mileage charges.
“We did all of that, and in that motion we agreed that this commission (discussion) would not take place until October, 2022,” he said. … “You owe the provider zero. They have to provide the service.”
And giving Gold Cross more money won’t “get them off the walls faster,” he said. … “We don’t owe them a dime.”
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Commissioner Brandon Garrett said the number of non-payers had increased in the past two years and that there were more people without insurance.
“Medicaid pays $100 per ride,” he said. “Medicare, up to $300.”
“Ultimately, we don’t owe them anything,” said Bobby Williams. “They have the zone. They are responsible for the zone.”
Before making his motion, Mason said, “I feel this is something we should do before it comes back to bite us in the butt.”
Before the vote, Hasan said the $1.4 million the city was paying Gold Cross in 2012, was over-inflated.
In 2005, a nationwide ambulance company had bid to provide the service for $400,000, and a commission committee had recommended that company, but the commission voted to have the administrator negotiate with Gold Cross instead, and the city ended up paying $1.3 million, Hasan said.
Sylvia Cooper is a columnist with The Augusta Press. Reach her at sylvia.cooper@theaugustapress.com
