A special meeting of the Brooksville City Council was held on March 27th to discuss the results of a Request for Proposal (RFP) issued on February 16th to explore options in providing an equal or increased level of service, including Advanced Life Support or ALS. ALS vehicles have specialized equipment and are staffed with personnel who are specifically certified in providing ALS care, primarily paramedics.
Brooksville Fire Chief David Freda presented to the Council three options. In the first option, the City of Brooksville would remain a participant of the Hernando County Municipal Service Taxing Unit (MSTU). This is the currently established service in the city of Brooksville at this time. The problems with this model that Brooksville Fire Department (BFD) and City Council are seeking to solve is the number of available of rescue units within the city, and compliance with Ordinance 789, which states that at least one ALS Unit shall be available to the city at all times.
The second option was the hiring of a private company to provide ALS service. The sole response for RFP came from MedFleet, which is a private, for-profit company that has been in business since 1973. MedFleet currently has 4-5 units in Hernando County at this time, providing transportation between healthcare facilities and non-emergency backup transportation as requested by Brooksville Fire Rescue. Revisions to MedFleet’s contract to include ‘First Response’ would need to be approved by the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC).
The final option is opting out of the MSTU and having the City of Brooksville provide the service. Freda stated that this option would result in an improved service level, and ensures the taxes are spent on city services. This will also benefit current personnel seeking to advance their careers with additional training. The downside to this option would be the upfront costs of equipment and training.
A great deal of discussion followed the presentation of the three options. Councilman William Kemerer and Chief Freda discussed situations that took place last year where the number of available ambulances was in violation of ordinance. Kemerer admonished that the deficiency should have been brought to the City Council at that time, as it is a legislative issue.
Freda agreed and stated that the issue of the ordinance not being followed has been an issue for the past seven years that he’s been with the department, and that the former City Manager was made aware of it. According to Natalie Kahler, the issue of inaction by the City Manager was addressed last summer, and taken to the BOCC. The BOCC decided not to take action at that time. Brooksville still does not have a permanent City Manager.
Deputy Chief Kevin Carroll addressed the Council in the matters of response times and existing vehicles and equipment. According to Carroll, response time is closer to four minutes in the city and not thirteen. He went on to say that long response times were in most cases ‘downgraded’ calls, such as when it’s been determined that the illness or injury is not life threatening. The Deputy Chief mentioned that if downgraded calls are treated as life-threatening emergencies, the risk of harm to the public increases when an emergency vehicle is “running lights and sirens … jumping roadways”
Regarding available vehicles and equipment, Carroll stated that there is actually an ALS Engine in the city of Brooksville, but it is not in use. He said that a “unilateral decision” was made to not use the ALS engine due to insurance reasons, and stated he was not told what those reasons are.
The MedFleet option would cost an estimated $76,000 per year, while the total cost of each trained Firefighter / Paramedic is $63,000 per year. Further discussions will be held in the future to address funding of the proposed changes such as the breakdown of MSTU / MSBU and Ordinance 789. A financial proposal is expected from the Fire Chiefs in the near future.
Mayor Robert Battista made the motion to reject the MedFleet proposal, which carried 5-0.