Morrow County leaders have responded to ongoing public concern about the state of the county’s ambulance service, seemingly trying to clarify the county’s role in the drama.
The response came in the form of a press release sent just before 5 p.m. Jan. 5, a little more than three weeks after Morrow County Health District gave the county notice it would be discontinuing its ambulance services in Morrow County in three months.
It also has been about three weeks since around 100 people attended the Morrow County Board of Commissioners meeting to comment on the issue and express concern.
The health district, which provides ambulance services to all of Morrow County, will cease its work starting March 12. Attendees at the December meeting were worried that stopping the service would mean there wouldn’t be any ambulance providers in the area.
There was another board of commissioners meeting Jan. 3, but only a few people commented on the ambulance service area plan and the issues between the county and the health district.
The county published a press release two days later, publicly calling out Morrow County Health District.
The release mentions the district’s concerns about retaining control over its ambulances, its objections to the language in and the process of drafting the ambulance service area plan, and its request for the county to cover its $1.25 million in annual losses.
“Morrow County will proceed with its efforts to develop the new ASA Plan,” the release said, “and is disappointed in the actions and refusal of MCHD to be constructively involved in that process.”
The health district rejected the characterization it has not been constructively involved in developing the new plan.
“Their press release had a lot of inaccuracies and misstatements,” said Emily Roberts, CEO of Morrow County Health District. “We did bring that to their attention, not that I would expect that they will correct it, but it was pretty offensive and it really flew in the face of all the work that we’ve been doing with them.”
Roberts said the health district has been “actively engaged” in the process at every step.
Addressing public concerns
County Administrator Matt Jensen said during the Jan. 3 meeting that ambulance service will continue regardless of whether it’s provided by the health district or other entities.
“I know that this has caused a lot of heartburn up in Irrigon,” he said. “We heard issues about there not being any ambulances or ambulances being pulled out. That is not going to be the case.”
The county’s press release then tried to address those same concerns.
“Morrow County will be obtaining interim services, if necessary, to continue ambulance services at the present levels during such time (as Morrow County Health District’s work stops),” the release said. “Replacement ambulances have been secured. There will be no interruption of ambulance services.”
The district and its supporters have been vocal in their displeasure with the line in the current and proposed ambulance service area contract that says the county can take and use the district’s ambulances and equipment for the interim service provider, until a permanent replacement is found.
The county clarified in the Jan. 5 release that it would not be seizing the health district’s ambulances for use after the 90 days are up, assuming there has not been a solution to the rift between the entities. The seizure has been an ongoing point of contention for the health district.
The county said during the December meeting the language was the same as it had been in an earlier contract, but representatives from the district said the line in the proposal means the district wouldn’t retain oversight of the equipment, and the original contract says it would.
While the wording issue is likely to continue to arise, it has at least been mitigated for now by the county’s declaration that it will not seize the district’s assets when the 90-day notice ends.
Repealing the contract
Jensen announced during the Jan. 3 board meeting the county may be repealing the 1998 ambulance service plan, which has been the operating plan for about the last year.
Roberts, with the health district, said that repealing the 1998 contract now, especially before approving a new contract, “would mean we don’t have any rules that we’re operating under, which means that they can just make it up as they go.”
The county, on the other hand, says the repeal is a necessary step for a new ambulance service area plan.
“MCHD’s current objections and allegations of bad faith regarding the repeal of the 1998 ASA Plan are surprising,” the press release said, “given that the County is required to repeal that Ordinance and Plan in order to implement the new Ordinance and ASA Plan.”
Repealing the 1998 contract is a legislative act taken by the board, said Jensen in the Jan. 3 meeting, but it’s not an action that the commissioners have taken at this point.
A request and denial
Roberts said she was surprised to learn of the potential repeal during the meeting, just as she was taken aback by the comments in the county’s press release.
“We had two meetings with the county that we thought were very productive,” she said, “but their press release really negates a lot of what we thought was going to happen as a result of those meetings, a lot of the progress that we thought had been made.”
Despite their increasingly tense differences, the county and health district are still in negotiations.
The county on Jan. 4 requested, via attorney, that the health district consider an extension on its 90-day notice, in case the Oregon Health Authority has not given its final feedback by March 12, when services will stop.
Then, the press release that Roberts said was offensive and inaccurate was released.
On Jan. 9, the health district, via attorney, responded.
Its board declined the extension and cited that its members believe the 90 days should be sufficient to figure out a plan. The letter also mentioned that it believes the county has not acted in good faith during negotiations, which is essentially the same claim the county has made against the health district.
At the end of the letter, the district requested the county enact a part of the 1998 ambulance service area contract detailing a process to undergo if a provider gives notice of vacating the area, as the health district has done.
The process would consist of the plan’s existing emergency medical services advisory committee appointing a task force made of representatives from the ambulance service provider, the health district board, the medical community and a non-health care resident of each involved community.
According to the 1998 contract, this group would work together to “reach a reasonable and workable solution.”
The problem with the makeup of the group, however, is that no one from the county leadership would be represented, and the county says that it must have final say over the plan and contracting.
The challenges between the county and the health district are sure to continue at public meetings and in letters from attorneys between the two parties. The next Morrow County Board of Commissioners meeting is Wednesday, Jan. 17, starting at 9 a.m. in Irrigon.
