I took the liberty of forwarding the original post to a friend at the FD, and was asked to post this message in reply to Dorie Rae Gallagher's posting.
Bill Radosevich Lyndale <start> October 5, 2004 Dear Ms. Gallagher, I was forwarded your email regarding the $400.00 charge the Fire Department files with insurance companies against an insured's personal injury accident fund. As you may not know, the Minneapolis Fire Department averages 34,000 calls a year. Of these, 24,000 are 911 requests for emergency medical care. We are proud to respond to calls for example of shortness of breath where we administer life-saving oxygen, diabetics in need of sugar where we administer oral glucose, cardiac arrest patients who require a shock from a defibrillator or victims of car accidents who may need nothing more than a physical assessment and in worst case scenarios, extrication from the vehicle. In order to provide this service, each one of our firefighters are initially trained as Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT)'s and then annually they are required to undergo extensive continuing education requirements to meet the State of Minnesota's EMT-Refresher curriculum. We take this responsibility seriously and we are dedicated to our mission, which of course is to save lives and protect property. Up until a year ago, we have provided this service free-of-charge. Unfortunately with the changes in local government aid, we have been forced to find alternate sources of revenue, just to keep firefighters on fire trucks and responding to emergency medical calls as well as fires. We are not eligible under current law for reimbursement through medical insurance because we do not transport patients. The State does provide Fire Department's reimbursement for car accidents from automobile insurance companies. The law does not allow discrimination of this charge and we are therefore required to charge the same for all victims of all car accidents, regardless of whether they are a City resident or not. Insurance companies do reimburse this fee, up to the personal injury fund limit of $20,000.00. Once that amount is exhausted, reimbursement is ceased. Our nominal $400.00 fee for response and evaluation of a victim's medical complaints does not cover our expenses. On any given personal injury response, you may find anywhere from one to three fire trucks with 4 - 12 Firefighter/EMT's. On average, vehicle extrication if required, will take up to 1 or more hours and requires extensive hydraulic equipment and rescue expertise. Certainly, our goal is not to get rich or inconvenience the citizens we serve but simply to offset costs of providing this service and to continue the exemplary patient care the citizens of Minneapolis have grown accustomed. As always, we have excused this charge for anyone that demonstrates a financial hardship and if that is the case in your case, we will do the same. I am very sorry for your experience and I thank you for your understanding as we all struggle to survive. Respectfully Submitted, Charlotte Holt, EMS Chief Minneapolis Fire Department <end) REMINDERS: 1. Think a member has violated the rules? Email the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
