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The following release is being provided by the City of Des Plaines to help explain the Ambulance Service Fee: Due to the recent passage of Ordinance M-12-07 by the Des Plaines City Council, residents requiring emergency ambulance transport in the City of Des Plaines will be billed an Ambulance Service Fee. (Non-residents have been charged since 1995.) Charges for basic life support (BLS) calls, advanced life support (ALS) calls and additional appropriate itemized expenses will be collected as of May 15, 2007. According to the City Ordinance, "An ambulance transportation fee is established for the purpose of defraying a portion of the costs involved with the transportation of persons by a Des Plaines Fire Department ambulance…" With the adoption of the ordinance, a fee of $400 for resident BLS calls and $450 for non-resident BLS calls will be charged. The fee for resident ALS calls, those requiring more extensive emergency care, is $500 for residents and $550 for non-residents. Along with ambulance transport fees, the following itemized expenses may be applied if applicable to the emergency response: Mileage, $10; Oxygen, $50; EKG, $50; IV, $50 and Immobilization, $100. Most insurance companies (Medicare and Non-Medicare providers) pay benefits on behalf of their customers in order to cover the cost of pre-hospital emergency medical care including Ambulance Service Fees. Individuals who require transport, but do not have insurance coverage and do not qualify for Medicare or Medicaid, will be assessed the Ambulance Service Fee as specified by the Ordinance. City Manager David Niemeyer reminds individuals: "Please call Medical Reimbursement, Inc. (773-233-5587), the City’s billing service for Ambulance Service Fees, with individual insurance concerns or if you are concerned about payment if you do not have insurance, Medicare or Medicaid." Des Plaines Fire Chief John Heavey stresses the importance of reporting and responding to emergencies: "Individuals should never hesitate to call 9-1-1 if you are in an emergency situation and require an ambulance- protecting your health and safety is the function and service of the Fire Department and it is a service we take pride in. The Ambulance Service Fee should not deter anyone from calling us for emergency care," Des Plaines Fire Chief John Heavey said. Once an individual has received ambulance service, Medical Reimbursement, Inc. will invoice the individual’s insurance carrier. The user will receive an Explanation of Benefits (EOB) from the insurance company explaining the portion of the Ambulance Service Fee that they will pay. The portion of the Ambulance Service Fee the insurance provider will pay is considered a "usual and customary cost" for providing pre-hospital care. Any portion of the fee in excess of the "usual and customary" cost paid by your insurance carrier will be considered a co-payment amount. An informational brochure regarding the Ambulance Service Fees, compiled by the City, will be distributed to residents with the citywide newsletter, the Des Plaines Digest, in mid-May prior to the onset of billing. Information will also be put on the City’s website. Many suburban communities, including Evanston, Glencoe, Park Ridge, Highland Park, Niles, Northbrook, Prospect Heights, Skokie, Wilmette, and Winnetka, have Ambulance Service Fees with costs comparable to those of Des Plaines. The overall cost of ambulance services in Des Plaines will depend on the level of service provided appropriate to the person’s needs, as judged necessary by the paramedics on the scene in consultation with a nearby hospital’s emergency room physician. Individual fees for materials or services rendered during an ambulance call will be itemized and provided to the insurance company along with the invoice. According to City Manager Niemeyer, the Ambulance Service Fee was determined by the City’s consultant and is comparable to other northern Illinois communities’ rates. "Many communities, including Des Plaines, have come to realize the value of assessing a user fee as a valuable means of continuing to provide the highest quality emergency medical care to the community. Des Plaines originally began billing non-residents for ambulance transport in 1995," Niemeyer said. Niemeyer emphasizes the importance of calling 9-1-1 for medical emergency transport and encourages individuals with questions regarding Ambulance Service Fees to call 773-233-5587 or emailing the City’s website at www.desplaines.org.
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