The North Bergen Board of Commissioners unanimously passed an ordinance that will enable the town to bill insurance carriers for its ambulance service, in an attempt to turn the current volunteer ambulance squad into one in which the emergency medical technicians are paid for their time and service.
According to township administrator Chris Pianese, the move was made to raise an estimated $500,000 in revenues for ambulance services.
“This ordinance allows us to issue a bill to the insurance companies or to Medicare, with no residual bills to the residents,” Pianese said. “Right now, we’re not collecting anything, so any dollar received is a plus to us. The goal is to increase service by adding the new revenue stream.”
Right now, the town budget pays for the current volunteer ambulance service, at an annual cost of $100,000 per year. The members currently receive a stipend for their work, but membership has dwindled over the years.
“Plus, there’s the maintenance and upkeep of the fleet and equipment,” Pianese said. “It gets costly.”
Pianese figures that if the township bills the insurance carriers or Medicare the cost of $400 per ambulance call, the town can make $500,000 annually with the amount of calls it receives currently.
“It’s the norm now,” Pianese said. “Most municipalities bill the insurance carriers and Medicare for ambulance service. We can improve our current service from the new revenue stream.”
Pianese said that the township hired a consultant firm, Dynamic Claims, Inc., a southern New Jersey firm that specializes in ambulance services. The firm did a survey on the town’s emergency service activity and came up with the suggestions to bill as a way to create revenues.
“The consultants said that $400 per call is the norm now throughout the state, so that’s the number we came up with,” Pianese said. “They said it’s a 100 percent effective service and it’s a home run for everyone.”
While some township critics have said that it was a ploy to eliminate the volunteer service and put the burden on the taxpayers, Pianese said it is simply not true.
“If you don’t have insurance, we won’t be able to collect,” Pianese said. “It’s as simple as that. Whatever’s collectable through insurance, that’s what we’ll take. There will be no residual billing to the residents. The taxpayers are not responsible.”
The residents should be rest assured that they will also not be responsible for any co-payment that the insurance carrier may require.
Pianese said that the township is in the process of applying for a license with the state as the North Bergen Ambulance Service. Once the paperwork is processed, then Pianese figures the township can begin billing for ambulance service in September or October.
“I think we’re also going to be able to retroactively bill for three months prior to the service officially becoming active,” Pianese said. “All that will be needed will be to supply the medical insurance information. Whatever we collect, we’ll collect. The insurance carriers and Medicare people are jumping up and down, but I’ve learned that a lot of our neighboring towns have been doing it, so it’s time for us to follow suit. In fact, some places have been shocked that we haven’t been doing it.”
Once the new provisions have been put into operation and the township begins to receive revenues, Pianese said that the town will move to turn the current volunteer system into a fully-paid operation, a move that has been applauded by the members.
“They’re very willing to cooperate,” Pianese said. “There are no negatives to this. Everyone seems to be on board. It makes all the sense in the world. We’ll upgrade service and pay our people, while receiving revenues. We will be able to expand our fleet and equipment without burdening the taxpayers. The volunteers seem to be energized to know that we will soon go fully paid. It’s a plus for us all.”