Logan County approves agreement listing up to $2.1 million for ambulance transports
The agreement would support a five-year effort to add staff and equipment and launch trips between medical facilities.
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Logan County commissioners approved an agreement Oct. 27 listing up to $2,105,514 for a county plan to add staff and equipment and transport patients between medical facilities, a recording of the special meeting shows.
The agreement is between Logan County and the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing and uses federal funding from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. At a Sept. 29 work session, county emergency medical services (EMS) representatives described the plan as a five-year effort. It includes a critical-care medic, an ambulance for trips between medical facilities, part-time emergency medical technicians and equipment such as cardiac monitors, they told commissioners.
The representatives said the county would track costs for the new trips separately from 911 services. The service could bill for transports, with revenue supporting its costs. They also said an advance payment could help the county avoid fronting about $2 million while awaiting reimbursement.
Officials planned to assess the service’s financial sustainability around years two or three, the representatives said. If revenue falls short, they said, the county could seek other funding, scale back the service or change course. The county is not committed to continuing the service after the grant period.
The agreement packet lists a maximum of $2,105,514, while the state’s awardee list lists Logan County’s award as $2,096,141, a difference of $9,373 that the records do not explain. The packet copy has blank signature fields and does not establish whether the county and state have completed signing.