To: MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
From: PATRICK BUTLER, FIRE CHIEF
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APPROVE AN AGREEMENT WITH WITTMAN ENTERPRISES, LLC FOR BILLING SERVICES ASSOCIATED WITH COLLECTION OF THE PRE-HOSPITAL PARAMEDIC ASSESSMENT FEE FOR A CHARGE NOT TO EXCEED $15 PER INCIDENT FOR AN INITIAL TERM OF JULY 16, 2025 THROUGH JULY 15, 2026
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
On June 20, 2023, the City Council approved an amendment to the Master Fee Schedule to update the Fire Department's Pre-Hospital Paramedic service fee from $100 to $313. The Pre-Hospital Paramedic service fee, commonly referred to as the Emergency Medical Service (EMS) First Responder Fee, is designed to recuperate the costs associated with the provision of emergency medical services, supplies, equipment, and personnel. The fee was first approved in 2010, but was never implemented. The collection of the $313 fee requires the development and execution of a billing program. Accordingly, the Fire Department has developed a fee collection policy that fairly balances the costs associated with EMS provision for all users and includes a hardship clause for those users who cannot afford, or are unable to pay, the fee. The policy also accounts for State legislation addressing "surprise" ambulance bills, including Assembly Bill (AB) 716, which is primarily directed to ambulance transport providers.
To implement the policy and to collect the fee, staff identified Wittman Enterprises, LLC (Wittman), an EMS billing company that provides services to a large number of EMS providers, as the most qualified firm to assist in administering the fee collection program. On June 17, 2025, the City Council directed staff to finalize an agreement with Wittman. Approval of the proposed Agreement would allow the City to begin fee collection, which is projected to produce a minimum of $250,000 of revenue in FY 2025-26. Once the billing program is fully established, there is the potential to collect as much as $1M, or more, per year.
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