ELY— How to maintain local ambulance service here was top of the agenda at a packed special meeting of the Ely Ambulance Joint Powers Board this week. As previously reported, the Ely Area Ambulance Service has been hemorrhaging funds for the past few years as costs of operating the service have jumped sharply.
The big problem? “It’s called paid on-call,” said Ely Clerk-Treasurer Harold Langowski, noting that a major jump in salary costs for the service was the primary factor pushing the service’s operating budget deep into the red. According to a 2022 financial report, through Aug. 30, the ambulance service’s staffing costs alone topped $380,000, or nearly $80,000 more than the total revenue taken in by the service during that same eight-month period. That doesn’t include the cost of ambulance supplies, fuel and other vehicle costs, or the expense of operating the ambulance service’s facilities.
Through the first eight months of the year, the service has lost $174,164, and that loss was expected to grow to approximately $260,000 by the end of the year.
The service, which had enjoyed a $355,000 cash reserve as recently as January 2020, is expected to be out of funds to pay its bills before the end of the year. The city of Ely and Ely-Bloomenson Hospital had already agreed to contribute $62,500 each to the service to help keep the bills paid and the ambulances running. At Tuesday’s special meeting, Morse Township agreed to fund its share, after Lake County agreed to contribute on behalf of Fall Lake Township. Ely, Winton, and the two townships make up the ambulance joint powers board and comprise the bulk of the ambulance’s service territory. The city of Winton agreed to chip in $3,380, based on a per capita payment of $20. That was less than the $11,000 the city’s mayor had agreed to seek at a joint powers board earlier in the month.
The additional financial assistance won’t come without a few strings. The city of Ely will be responsible for billing and collecting the payments from Winton and the townships, as well as the hospital, and those funds will go into a dedicated account overseen by the joint powers board. The private, nonprofit board which directly oversees the ambulance service will have to make formal requests to tap funds from the account and will need to provide the joint powers board with an explanation of how the funds will be used. Langowski said the ambulance service will also be expected to develop a budget for needed renovations to its new ambulance hall and quarters as well as its operations.
While the contributions will help the ambulance service pay its bills this year, local officials are still trying to chart a path forward that will sustain the service well into the future.
At this point, that’s almost certain to include higher taxes, in some form or another. Currently, Ely, Winton, and the two organized townships pay $10.10 per capita to the service, which generates a little over $50,000 a year, well short of what’s needed to cover the annual shortfall the service has experienced over the past two years. Joint powers members have discussed increasing the per-capita payment to $20, which would raise about $108,000 for the service.
But city officials in Ely are pushing for a per-parcel rate, which would tap the considerable property wealth in the outlying townships. City officials have complained that the current approach essentially exempts property owners who don’t live year-round in the coverage area and leaves Ely to pay the lion’s share of the annual ambulance subsidy. Township officials have resisted a per-parcel approach since it would substantially increase their required contribution.
One other option, that has been discussed, is the creation of a taxing district, similar to the one created for the Cook Hospital, which would allow for a general property tax levy that could support the ambulance service.

Hospital changes weighed on ambulance finances
Not long ago, the Ely Ambulance Service, which was formed as a nonprofit in 2008, was in solid financial shape, thanks to an arrangement with Ely-Bloomenson that helped to staff the service without the current high cost. Under state law, ambulance services are required to have a written on-call schedule, seven days a week, 24-hours a day. For years prior to 2008, Ely’s ambulance service was run by the hospital and was able to make use of hospital staff who were able to respond to 911 calls. “It was perfect when EMTs could work the floor and then go out on calls when they came in,” said Langowski. “When the hospital could no longer staff it, that’s when things started going south.”
The hospital severed its connection to the ambulance service when it became apparent that Medicare payments to the hospital were being reduced by the presence of the ambulance bay within the hospital.
For a time, the hospital did make unused rooms available for quarters to house on-duty ambulance staff, but when the hospital ran out of extra space, it forced the service to rent its own quarters elsewhere.
“We had to rent a house for $1,200 a month and outfit it,” said Chuck Novak, board chair of the nonprofit that operates the ambulance. “We had to pay for all the utilities, that was a lot of additional expense that started to erode away the fund balance that had accumulated.”
The COVID pandemic provided a financial hit to services all across the country, and those problems were exacerbated, according to Novak, when the service fell behind on its billings, which affected the operation’s cash flow.
Novak said the board was unaware of the extent of the service’s financial and revenue processing issues until the service’s longtime director Geoff Galaski quit suddenly last year. “He just left his keys on the desk and hasn’t talked to anyone about it since,” said Novak.
The service’s board has since brought on Dustin Moravitz to try to get things back on track. Novak said the board was surprised when they finally got a clearer picture of the administrative problems the service was experiencing, which was affecting the service’s financials. “We have a billing company but you have to give them the data,” said Novak. “It shows that things can go to heck in a handbasket overnight if you don’t keep up with the billings.”
For now, on-duty ambulance staff, who are paid between $18-$23 an hour depending on qualifications, are handling much of the administration, including maintaining drugs and various supplies, updating records, and submitting run data to the billing company.
Novak said the board is working on a turnaround plan, although the specifics aren’t yet available.
It’s apparent that all of the local units of government in the Ely area are in agreement on the importance of the ambulance. As part of their commitment, the local units of government chipped in a combined $465,000 earlier this year buy the former Kondo’s building at the intersection of Central Ave. and Camp St. to house the ambulance and its crew.
That’s eliminated the need to rent quarters elsewhere, but the building still needs to be renovated before it can fully meet the service’s needs. Local officials have a $1.5 million appropriation request for emergency response facility improvements before Congress, but Langowski said it’s unclear when or even if the funds will eventually be appropriated. For now, he said, both of the state’s U.S. senators are behind the proposal. “But we still don’t know if it will make it through.”
Regardless, local officials seem intent on finding a solution. Hospital officials, as well, indicated a willingness to be part of any solution, including contributions to an operating fund. The hospital has also offered to bring in a consultant to assess the situation and make recommendations.
Langowski said it’s encouraging to see the cooperation from all the local units of government. While they may differ on the path forward, he said all parties agree that failure isn’t an option. “It seems like we’re all in lockstep to keep this going,” said Langowski. “I think everyone can agree that ambulance service is essential.”