The latest news heard was that Life EMS will likely be the new EMS provider in the Stillwater area.
Life EMS finalist to provide services for Payne County
Silas Allen, CNHI News Service
Enid News and Eagle
Stillwater — Emergency medical service companies in Enid and Texas are the two finalists for area ambulance service.
Western Payne County Ambulance Trust Authority Board narrowed its candidate pool to two companies Tuesday. The two remaining bidders are Life EMS, of Enid, and Lifenet, of Texarkana, Texas. The board will invite the two companies to give oral presentations at 3 p.m. July 19.
During the meeting, the board eliminated two companies from the bidding process. They were American Medical Response, of Greenwood Village, Colo., and Emergency Medical Services Authority, of Tulsa and Oklahoma City.
Board members scored each company in a number of areas, including accounts receivable and billing practices, human resources and control center operations. At the end of the scoring, each company’s price was included in the decision.
Initially, the board planned on using a formula to rank the companies’ prices. The formula took into account factors such as average cost to the patient and proposed subsidies paid by Stillwater, said consultant Steve Athley.
Board member Gary Clark said he had misgivings about the formula, so the board ranked the companies twice: once using the pricing formula and once using a subjective judgment. Clark said using two methods allowed board members to provide input in the category.
“We don’t want to let the numbers dictate our good sense,” he said.
In the end, the ranking was the same for both methods used. Life EMS had the highest score. The company’s proposal shows a $726.61 average patient charge for the first year, with a subsidy requirement of just above $1 million. Lifenet came in second, with an average patient charge of $815.09 and a required subsidy of $1.1 million for the first year.
American Medical Response, one of the companies eliminated, had an average customer charge of $792.50 for the first year and a required subsidy of $1.68 million. Emergency Medical Services Authority, also eliminated, did not provide average customer charge statistics, but listed a cost of $1,100 for emergencies and $393.06 for non-emergencies. The company’s required subsidy was $3.6 million for the first year.
In the end, pricing proved to be the determining factor, Athley said. That was no surprise, he said, since all four companies were strong candidates in every other area. The scoring matrix the board used also placed heavy importance on pricing, he said, which reflects the fact the city of Stillwater has a finite pool of resources.
The city of Stillwater has operated the city’s ambulance service since the early 1970s, City Manager Dan Galloway said. He said earlier the city was considering preparing a bid, but wasn’t able to put together a proposal by the deadline.
During the board’s July 19 meeting, the two remaining companies will give 30-minute presentations, followed by 30 minutes of questions from the board, said board chairman Jerry Moeller. By virtue of random selection, Life EMS will give its presentation at 3 p.m., and Lifenet at 4:30 p.m.
Life EMS finalist to provide services for Payne County
Silas Allen, CNHI News Service
Enid News and Eagle
Stillwater — Emergency medical service companies in Enid and Texas are the two finalists for area ambulance service.
Western Payne County Ambulance Trust Authority Board narrowed its candidate pool to two companies Tuesday. The two remaining bidders are Life EMS, of Enid, and Lifenet, of Texarkana, Texas. The board will invite the two companies to give oral presentations at 3 p.m. July 19.
During the meeting, the board eliminated two companies from the bidding process. They were American Medical Response, of Greenwood Village, Colo., and Emergency Medical Services Authority, of Tulsa and Oklahoma City.
Board members scored each company in a number of areas, including accounts receivable and billing practices, human resources and control center operations. At the end of the scoring, each company’s price was included in the decision.
Initially, the board planned on using a formula to rank the companies’ prices. The formula took into account factors such as average cost to the patient and proposed subsidies paid by Stillwater, said consultant Steve Athley.
Board member Gary Clark said he had misgivings about the formula, so the board ranked the companies twice: once using the pricing formula and once using a subjective judgment. Clark said using two methods allowed board members to provide input in the category.
“We don’t want to let the numbers dictate our good sense,” he said.
In the end, the ranking was the same for both methods used. Life EMS had the highest score. The company’s proposal shows a $726.61 average patient charge for the first year, with a subsidy requirement of just above $1 million. Lifenet came in second, with an average patient charge of $815.09 and a required subsidy of $1.1 million for the first year.
American Medical Response, one of the companies eliminated, had an average customer charge of $792.50 for the first year and a required subsidy of $1.68 million. Emergency Medical Services Authority, also eliminated, did not provide average customer charge statistics, but listed a cost of $1,100 for emergencies and $393.06 for non-emergencies. The company’s required subsidy was $3.6 million for the first year.
In the end, pricing proved to be the determining factor, Athley said. That was no surprise, he said, since all four companies were strong candidates in every other area. The scoring matrix the board used also placed heavy importance on pricing, he said, which reflects the fact the city of Stillwater has a finite pool of resources.
The city of Stillwater has operated the city’s ambulance service since the early 1970s, City Manager Dan Galloway said. He said earlier the city was considering preparing a bid, but wasn’t able to put together a proposal by the deadline.
During the board’s July 19 meeting, the two remaining companies will give 30-minute presentations, followed by 30 minutes of questions from the board, said board chairman Jerry Moeller. By virtue of random selection, Life EMS will give its presentation at 3 p.m., and Lifenet at 4:30 p.m.
