Washington County raises ambulance rates

WASHINGTON — County supervisors last week approved a handful of increases in the local ambulance agency’s service fees, raising the costs for most uses of emergency medical transportation.

Washington County Ambulance Director Jordan Wright said the math worked out to an overall average increase of about 11% for ambulance services, though some items grew by more than that. Non-emergency basic life support fees went from $625 to $750, for example, an increase of 17%. And the fee for emergency Advanced Life Support went from $825 to $950, an increase of 12%. Advanced Life Support intercept services got the greatest percentage-point increase, growing 27% in a jump from $200 to $275.

“It is cost-based, it goes off of fuel, the price of an ambulance, equipment, staffing, all of the things that cost us money,” Wright said. “The price on an ambulance last year, the same ambulance that we ordered went up $32,000, I think. And you essentially do an ambulance every year … either buying new or remounting.”

Wright said the new rates placed Washington County around the middle of the pack, in a study of 20-30 private and public ambulance services.

Washington County has made adjustments to its ambulance rates around the start of every new fiscal year, according to supervisors. While fees rose about 10% headed into FY 2025, the adjustments haven’t always increased. The county slashed its rates across the board in April of 2023, on the heels of slight increases in ‘22.

Not every fee for service went up this year.

The county ambulance’s mileage rate remains unchanged at $22/hour, according to meeting materials shared with the supervisors. Its fee for lift assists stayed at $250, and the costs of advanced and basic life support services without transportation remain unchanged, at $0 and $275, respectively.

Comments: Kalen.McCain@southeastiowaunion.com