After Procarent — the company that owns Yellow Ambulance — announced in January that it would not renew its contract to serve the Owensboro-Daviess County area, city and county officials began negotiations to secure another provider. However, reaching an agreement has not been an easy process.
City and county officials are negotiating on an ever-closing gap of time until the Yellow Ambulance contract runs out on July 1. Negotiations have hit a few roadblocks on the path toward settling an agreement.
“It’s been slower than expected,” said City Manager Nate Pagan. “It’s just typical negotiating. [The setbacks] have been primarily about money, as these things tend to be.”
Tension arose at a recent meeting regarding ambulance services, leading Judge-Executive Al Mattingly and County Attorney Claud Porter to leave the meeting early. Mattingly said at Tuesday’s Fiscal Court meeting that he was “disappointed in where we’re at.”
However, Mattingly also said discussions were further along than they’d been at the first meeting held in January, and Pagan agrees that negotiations have come a long way since then.
“We’re very close. We’ll still have it done by July 1,” Pagan said.
Ultimately, it’s up to Pagan and Mattingly to decide which vendor will be chosen to provide the city and county ambulance services. Pagan said they’ve had discussions with vendors from the city, the county and Owensboro Health Regional Hospital.
Owensboro Fire Department Chief Steve Mitchell has participated in the meetings surrounding the ambulance contract, and clarified that the entire purpose behind the negotiations was to find an ambulance provider that could serve a long-term contract. A short-term contingency plan isn’t what this upcoming contract is supposed to focus on, Mitchell said.
“The whole purpose, since day one, is to get a long-term agreement — a 10-year agreement. That’s what we’re striving for.” Mitchell said. “The contingency agreement was a short-term agreement. Instead of implementing that, we wanted a long-term ambulance service in place instead of a short-term. Some of the frustration is in getting over that hurdle.”
Pagan agreed that a long-term plan is best for the city and county.
“It’s hard to have a short-term provider because it’s an intensive capital solution, and we’re looking for a long-term solution,” Pagan said.
According to Mitchell, an agreement has nearly been reached between negotiators.
“We’re definitely there now,” Mitchell said. “It’s just a matter of finalizing it.”
