The East Contra Costa Fire Protection District approved a plan on Monday that will allow residents who are provided with medical service a chance to apply for a fee waiver after being billed for emergency medical services.
The “First Responder Fee” is set to begin in April at a cost of $337 per call which the District hopes will help in cost recovery. The fee is expected to create more than $600,000 in new revenue for the cash strapped district.
According to the District, they are citing the Fire Protection District Law of 1987, that states if a district finds it does not have adequate revenue available to provide the services that it is empowered to provide including:
1) fire protection services
2) rescue services
3) emergency medical services
4) hazardous material emergency response services
5) ambulance services,
6) any other services relating to the protection of lives and property, it may raise additional revenue pursuant to several alternative methods.
The law states that the District can charge a fee to recover the cost for any service it provides, such as emergency medical response services in cases of illness or injury.
According to Chief Henderson, the Board moved forward with the plan while the District provided examples of “hardships” that could be considered in terms of a waiver being granted.
“As we discussed in the past all patients will be receiving bills for the first responder fee and will have the ability to have their case reviewed,” said Chief Henderson.
Here are copy of text on each of the examples provided in the powerpoint presentation:
Example 1: Uninsured Patient
- Context: Medical emergency
- Care provided: Basic life support
- Patient has no medical insurance or has not provided insurance information such that an invoice cannot be sent to an insurer
- Will the District waive the fee?
MAYBE; the District will send the invoice but the patient can apply for a hardship waiver
Example 2: Insured Patient
- Context: Medical emergency
- Care provided: Basic life support
- Insured, one plan only
- Insurance pays portion of fee
- Will the District waive the fee?
YES; the portion not covered by insurance will be waived
Example 3: Insured Patient, but Claim Denied
- Context: Vehicle accident
- Care provided: Rudimentary care but patient declines transport to hospital
- Patient has insurance and provides info to District
- Insurance claim is denied
- Will the District waive the fee?
MAYBE; the District will send the invoice but the patient can apply for a hardship waiver
Example 4: Patient Died
- Context: Vehicle or medical emergency
- Care provided: Basic life support, with or without extraction from vehicle
- No insurance information is provided
- Will the District waive the fee?
MAYBE: the District has authority to waive the fee if the Fire Chief or designee finds waiver to be in the District’s best interest
Examples 1 and 4: No Clear Waiver, Invoice Issued to Patient
- Outcome 1: Invoice is paid by patient/patient’s family
- Outcome 2: District is provided with insurance information
- District will invoice insurer
- Outcome 3: District is informed that patient has died
- Fee can be waived
- Outcome 4: Patient claims hardship
- District will examine waiver request to determine if fee is unrecoverable / if waiver is in the best interest of the District, e.g.:
- Patient’s family is on fixed income insufficient to afford fee
- Patient’s parent or spouse died during / as a result of the accident.
The fire district has stated multiple times they are wanting to keep the policy as simple as possible and the Ordinance is just a page long.
