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