ELY- Patti Banks, CEO of the Ely-Bloomenson Community Hospital told the Ely Area Ambulance Joint Powers Board on Tuesday that the hospital is funding a $70,000 study that hospital officials hope will provide options for successfully operating the struggling ambulance service.
She also informed the joint powers board that the hospital would be contributing to cover the operating costs of the ambulance service facility, purchased by the joint powers board last year.
The ambulance study is tasked with answering “how to set up an ambulance service for success,” and it will look beyond Ely for that answer, potentially encompassing other area services in northern St. Louis and Lake counties. “I will be meeting with some of those entities (like Tower, Babbitt, Eagle’s Nest, etc.) on Sept. 12,” said Banks.
Banks stated that EBCH felt things had changed a great deal since the JPB was set up and that potential solutions have to involve more than additional funding from area communities. “We have to dig further than just money and funding. And we know, we all know how quick the Legislature moves, so we have to do something for sustainability and feasibility that will bring us quicker results (than waiting for the Legislature).” Banks summarized that the solution to the ambulance service concerns should involve looking at not just funding, but also “structural” and staffing issues. The study will explore all these issues, she added.
Al Forsman, who represents Ely on the JPB, thanked Banks and the hospital for taking the initiative and footing the cost of the ambulance study.
Hostile takeover?
Banks also addressed rumors that the hospital wanted to take over the ambulance service. She noted that the hospital’s primary concern is that the area continues to have a viable ambulance service. “The hospital will not and cannot allow the community to go without an ambulance service,” Banks said. “We would like to work cooperatively with the existing ambulance service, but if that is not a possibility, we will move on a parallel track to be sure that those services remain.”
But Banks said any change in the operation of the ambulance service will have to be undertaken with the full support of the nonprofit that currently operates the ambulance. “I wanted to address this because there has been a lot of talk about the hospital doing a hostile takeover,” Banks said.
Banks detailed actions that the hospital has taken since the spring, including research into ambulance service licensing. “I contacted the Minnesota Emergency Medical Services Regulatory Board (EMSRB), to ask about what license transfer (for the ambulance service) looks like.”
But she noted that any license transfer back to the hospital would need the support of the existing nonprofit that currently operates the Ely ambulance. “It has to be done cooperatively,” she said.
Her research looked into a second scenario as well. “For some reason, (if) the ambulance service dissolves on its own, for whatever reason … the hospital would need to work with the EMSRB and start an entirely new application process for an ambulance service. So those are the two options available.”
Banks’ comments contained two implications. First, that EBCH doesn’t appear interested in running an ambulance service but is prepared to do so if necessary. The second is that EBCH is concerned about the financial health of the EAAS, which has been in dire financial straits over multiple years. The study of regional ambulance services is one of the ways that EBCH is exploring to improve EMS services locally.
Hospital donation
The EBCH will resume at least some of its support of ambulance-related costs. It will donate $6,510 this week to the operating costs of the JPB-owned ambulance building. Ely clerk-treasurer Harold Langowski, who manages the bookkeeping for the JPB, sent out invoices on Aug. 7 for $6,510 to Ely, Morse, Fall Lake, and EBCH, and an invoice for $1,085 to Winton reflective of its lower, 4 percent ownership in the building.
Banks did not address whether EBCH will resume contributions to also support the ambulance service’s operating expenses.
Pushback
Some of the ambulance service personnel at the JPB meeting had a different take on Banks’ comments at the meeting.
“The hospital is actually costing the ambulance (service) a lot of money,” stated Rhonda Prahl, who works for the ambulance service, “and they’re not paying anything to help the ambulance out.” She outlined how certain transports responding at the hospital cause a cascade of EAAS costs when more crews are called in to continue EMS coverage of the Ely area.”
Prahl went on to add, “Why is everyone pissed at the ambulance over costing money … we provide the best service we can and it seems like we’re just getting kicked. If the hospital wants to be a part of it, then they should donate and help us out with expenses.”
JPB chair Marilyn Zorman pointed out that EBCH has donated, referring to the donations made up until April, and the renewed donations toward JPB building operation costs starting up again this week.
“They haven’t yet that I know of,” responded Prahl, “and they said they weren’t going to,” apparently referring to the April letter from EBCH stating the hospital was halting its voluntary support of the ambulance service over both administrative and financial concerns. At this point in the meeting, the information that EBCH was resuming at least some of its voluntary support had already been disclosed publicly.
EAAS board member Chuck Novak’s comments were more biting. He noted that the ambulance service was once part of EBCH and that the hospital helped create the ambulance service as its own nonprofit in 2008 in response to changes in Medicare funding. He noted the irony of EBCH helping to form the JPB if the hospital took the ambulance service back over.
Invoking recent “disparaging reports” in the local press, Novak commented about the financial policies the JPB put into place last year “for funding the ambulance service” after the purchase of the new ambulance facility building, referring especially to the monthly invoicing for expenses.
Previous to the change made last year, the ambulance service would submit its request for subsidy from the JPB on a once-a-year basis, and the JPB would disburse the funds. The change made last October called for the JPB to approve the disbursements on a monthly basis instead. This practice is in keeping with most other local government bodies which approve their financials on a monthly basis.
Novak interpreted this as “treating the ambulance as an ugly stepchild,” and sarcastically added, “Thanks for the trust.”
Langowski stated that the purpose of the more frequent financial approvals was improved financial transparency. The change was also made because of the additional complexity added to the finances because of the purchase of the new building last year.
In other action, the JPB:
• Heard a report from Novak of the EAAS board that the audit of its finances was “still with the auditors” and the ambulance service has been “satisfying final questions from the auditors.”
• Approved a fund balance of $20,532, collected from the invoices sent out to Ely, Morse, Fall Lake and Winton. This amount will be augmented by $6,510 when the EBCH contribution arrives this week. The JPB voted to disburse that money to EAAS.
• Set the next JPB meeting for Sept. 11 at the Winton Community Center.