ORD-2003-185 Second Reading - Non-Emergency Private Ambulance Franchise Applicatio

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2 transportation of patients. NEMTA plans to operate one ambulance that will be available to schedule trips within Orange County. This may benefit the citizens by providing shorter wait times for units The ambulance franchise ordinance stipulates in part that a franchise may be granted if "the proposed service will fit within the existing service so as not to adversely affect the level of service or operations of other franchisees to render service." Staff believes that given the current and forecast demographics of Orange County and the evident increasing number of requests for service received by the County's Emergency Medical Services division, it is reasonable to allow this local entity to operate within Orange County to help meet the needs of the community. Franchising another non - emergency provider benefits the citizen by providing more choice in service providers. As a point of clarification, it should be noted that the County's ambulance franchise ordinance governs only transports that take place between two points within the geographical boundaries of Orange County. Properly licensed providers may provide transports between a point in Orange County and a point in another county without having that activity subject to Orange County's ordinance. For example, NEMTA is already permitted to pick up a resident from a convalescent facility in Orange County and transport that person to Duke Hospital or Durham Regional, or vice versa. It is staff's understanding that NEMTA has just recently begun to perform such intercounty transports. FINANCIAL IMPACT: The decision to grant a franchise to NEMTA of the Carolinas will not have any financial impact on EMS or the County. RECOMMENDATION(S): The Manager recommends that the Board, on this second reading, issue a franchise for non - emergency BLS ambulance transportation to NEMTA of the Carolinas of Chapel Hill.