Ambulance services in Temple will be changing in the next few months, according to city officials.
Baylor Scott and White has been offering emergency ambulance services to people in the city of Temple for over 20 years. So for many people in the city, including city employees, the changes are surprising.
The city of Temple and Scott and White had a contract for services that ended on September 30, 2016. That was extended for one year. According to the city, emergency services with Scott and White will end on September 30, 2017.
The city started taking proposals from emergency service companies at the end of January who want to be the primary ambulance provider. Those bidders included Acadian, American Medical Response and Allegiance.
"You want to make sure that you give the opportunity to everyone that is interested in providing the service for the city of Temple. So it's open in fair competition and that's what we tried to give the opportunity to anyone that would provide these services to come forth and state their qualifications and their proposal for providing these services," Belinda Mattke, Director of Purchasing for the city of Temple said.
The deadline to submit those proposals was March 8.
Mattke told News Channel 25 that Scott and White did not submit a proposal.
During a city council workshop meeting on Thursday afternoon, Mattke recommended the council approve the proposal to work with American Medical Response.
In a presentation during the meeting, Mattke mentioned some of the costs for Advanced Life Support ambulance calls will go up by $225 if the city approves this in two weeks. Also, it will also lower costs by $150 if someone is treated by EMS but not transported.
This proposed change does not affect non-emergency ambulance calls, like being transferred from one facility to another. It only affects emergency calls.
News Channel 25 reached out to Scott and White to find out why they did not submit a proposal to continue services. An employee in Scott and White's marketing and PR department said they will have answers for News Channel 25 on Friday.
On Friday afternoon, Scott & White sent News Channel 25 this statement:
"We are proud of the service Scott & White provided the City of Temple for many years, and we continue to value our relationship with the city. As a not-for-profit always evaluating the best ways to serve our communities with limited resources, we chose to not submit a proposal to the city following its recent RFP. We are certainly now supportive of any new company chosen by the city for this service and will work with them closely.”
The city council will make a final decision on May 18.
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