By Richard Kerns
rkerns@newstribune.info
tribune staff writer
KEYSER — Fresh from an appearance before the Mineral County Commissioners, members of the Keyser EMS attended Monday afternoon’s meeting of the Keyser Mayor and City Council to appeal for immediate and long-term funding to avoid a shutdown of the ambulance service.
“We’re trying very hard but we’re to a point where we don’t know if we can keep our doors open,” said Autumn Shaffer, a member of Keyser EMS.
Squad members said the organization is out of money, with more than $200,000 in liabilities – including mortgage and tax debts – and a bank account that is $500 in the hole. On Sunday the squad stopped staffing the unit with paid personnel, and is now relying solely on volunteers.
Squad members attributed their financial difficulties to Medicare/Medicaid reimbursements that are months
behind in being paid and that do not cover the full cost of the service provided. Members also said the squad’s accountant had failed to notify officers of pending tax bills totaling tens of thousands of dollars.
Keyser EMS officials said the citizens of Keyser will suffer if the squad goes out of business, with response times greatly increasing for more distant ambulances. “If we go under ... you’re looking at people in the city of Keyser calling an ambulance 20 minutes away,” Shaffer said.
The city of Keyser provides $10,000 a year to the squad. Councilman Ed Miller, who was chairing the meeting for an absent Mayor Glen “Bunk” Shumaker, said the council is currently crafting next year’s budget and will take the squad’s concerns into account.
“We’ll keep it under consideration for getting it back in the budget again,” he said.
Pressed as to why the city can fund a $7,000 salary study — which was approved at Monday’s meeting — and not come up with additional funds for the EMS squad, Miller said the city does not have the means to resolve the squad’s financial problems. “The city cannot pass out that much funding to keep them going,” he said.
As part of the discussion, Keyser City Police Officer Chris Paitsel — an officer with the Keyser Volunteer Fire Department — offered to host a meeting with EMS personnel to discuss a possible merging of the two agencies. Merged fire and rescue units are treated more favorably by federal and state granting agencies, officials said, and it is hoped that Keyser EMS may be able to qualify for grants or other funds if it were merged with the fire department.
In other business, the salary study approved by the council will be conducted by the North Carolina-based Archer Company, and will compare city pay rates to other municipalities. The study will also review job classifications and duties to determine whether pay is appropriately weighed to various job responsibilities.
Council members directed City Administrator Deborah Pamepinto to have the company move quickly on the study, so that any recommendations can be included in the new budget, which takes effect July 1.
They council delayed action on a proposal by a local car dealership to provide maintenance for the city’s vehicles. Council members appeared ready to approve the measure until former councilman Marques Rice noted that garages in the city limits might want to seek the work as businesses that pay city taxes. City accountant Mike Ryan also noted that the work would have to be bid out to allow other companies to compete for the business, as the cost of the contract would exceed $2,000.
Finally, Water Distribution Supervisor Sonny Gank announced that a $1.5 million rehabilitation project at Dam 14 — the city’s water reservoir — appears to be a go, with construction set for this fall. All of the funding would be provided by the federal government, together with a state contribution. “Our dam’s going to be totally redone and it’s not going to cost us a penny,” he said.
As part of the meeting, Ken Dyche of the Region 8 Planning and Development Council, updated the council on the status of planned upgrades to the city water system, including extension of lines to homes on Hollywood Road. Dyche said competition for the funds targeted for the project is intense, but the effort is nevertheless moving forward, slowly but surely. “Generally, your project is progressing as well as it can at this stage,” he said.
Although Monday night’s meeting drew a standing-room-only crowd, including the two employees recently dismissed for alleged misconduct at the wastewater treatment plant, only one person spoke during the public comment phase, registering concern about the ambulance service.
The Keyser Council will next meet at 4:30 p.m. April 13.
