Henry County supervisors continue toward EMS levy on November ballot

MT. PLEASANT - The Henry County Board of Supervisors are continuing to work to present a levy to voters in November for emergency medical services.

In a brief phone call to the county's attorney Steve Nadel from Ahlers & Cooney, the supervisors again reiterated they would be waiting for financial information as well as a draft of an agreement from the hospital and its attorney. Nadel repeated that the supervisors would have to decide what level of support they would be providing to the hospital.

Board member Greg Moeller reviewed the options which included 'cover[ing] the losses, share the losses, share at a certain level or provide the maximum dollars as law allows.”

Nadel added he felt the use of the term and concept of 'loss is more complex than one may think … due to various hospital reimbursement rules.”

'I have the sense that if the ambulance system were looked upon entirely in a vacuum, it might be breaking even ballpark,” he said.

'That tells me there is risk here for differences of opinion on what the word ‘loss' really means and what it is comprised of,” Nadel added. The attorney also noted an agreement would need to be finalized by the second week of August in order for the levy to be presented on the November ballot.

The board said its intention is to continue working toward that deadline and election.

Rural resident of the county Bruce Hudson expressed confusion to the board as to why the county, 'an entity levying taxes” is 'going to then take money [to] offset” the hospital's losses since the hospital is 'an entity that already has the capability of raising taxes.”

Chief Operating Officer Michelle Rosell said the hospital's levy specifically for EMS is capped at 27 cents.

'That doesn't cover the cost of the program,” Rosell said.

Hudson then noted a study the hospital's ambulance service did a year prior in conjunction with Jefferson County showed 'EMS doesn't lose money other than at the time they go to buy an ambulance.”

Rosell again explained the hospital loses anywhere from $600,000 to $700,000 because ambulance is a 'non-cost reimbursement Medicare service,” which 'drives down [the hospital's] cost basis for overall revenue of the hospital.”

'So even though the service line itself is about break even … the cost reimbursement and the allocations we have to do being a Medicare critical access hospital ends up reducing our reimbursement about $600,000 plus annually - that's the issue,” Rosell said.

The COO further reiterated the loss is directly tied to EMS and without the service, the hospital would not be seeing the reduction in reimbursements.

Moeller added the levy would be specific to the 'ambulance portion” of the hospital.