Kalispell to consider higher ambulance fees
The Kalispell City Council on Tuesday will consider raising fees for emergency medical services.
In December, the council looked at adopting a fee schedule used by service providers in other cities. The recommendation going before the council will include fee increases.
Basic life support emergency and non-emergency calls will increase from $700 to $913.54 for city residents or $1,163.54 for nonresidents. Advanced life support calls will rise from $880 to $1,072.77 for residents and $1,322.77 for nonresidents.
The biggest change to the fee schedule will be a new charge for materials and equipment.
The ambulance service has not previously charged people for oxygen tanks, defibrillation pads and intravenous supplies. If the council approves the resolution to update fees, patients would bear those costs of $74.78, $74.24 and $63.48, respectively.
The last time the fees were updated was in 2010. A memo from Kalispell Fire Chief Dave Dedman to City Manager Doug Russell said the 2010 fee schedule does not reflect the current cost of services.
Nonresidents would be able to waive nonresident billing fees by showing proof of residency or commercial land ownership within city limits.
If the council approves the new fee scheduling, the new structure will go into effect immediately.
The council also will hold a public hearing on the revenue bonds for Immanuel Lutheran Corporation totaling $35 million. The money would be used to refinance the debt Immanuel Lutheran already owes the city, as well as capital improvement projects to its health care facilities on Buffalo Hill.
The council heard the first reading of the resolution to issue the bonds in December. Russell said Immanuel Lutheran has had a good working relationship with the city and he didn’t have any concerns about the existing debt.
After the public hearing, the council will vote to approve or deny the resolution to issue the bonds.
The council will also vote on a special event permit allowing the sale of alcohol at the fifth annual Craft Brewers Festival and Hockey Tournament. The tournament is Jan. 22 through 24 at Woodland Ice Center. Vendors hope to sell alcohol on one day of the event, Jan. 23, from noon to 8 p.m.
Another item on Tuesday’s agenda will be extending a memorandum of understanding between the city and the Community Action Partnership. The 2009 memorandum used money to establish the Northwest Community Land Trust.
The Community Land Trust essentially acquires land and removes it from the for-profit real estate market to cap the price of the property or home, keeping it at an affordable rate for home buyers. Extending the agreement wouldn’t require any money from the city, although it may work with Community Action Partnership to apply for grant funding in the future.
The council will meet on Tuesday, the day after Martin Luther King Jr. Day, at 7 p.m. in City Hall, 201 First Avenue East.
Reporter Seaborn Larson may be reached at 758-4441 or by email at slarson@dailyinterlake.com.