Recently some questions have come up about the operation of the Town of Billerica Ambulance Service so I thought I would provide an overview of the current operations and an evolution over the last 30 or so years since it has been in existence. The service has 12 full time Paramedics and in fiscal year 2013 the service transported over 2100 people to area hospitals for treatment.

Billerica EMS is the primary 911 service for Advanced Life Support (ALS) and ambulance transport for the Town of Billerica. The service was created over 30 years ago by the Town Administration and Town Meeting. At that time the service provided one ambulance 24 hours 7 days per week with an EMT Intermediate level service. Since that time the service evolved into an ALS level service staffed by Paramedic level trained staff only. Several years ago the service hours expanded with a second ALS unit being added 12 hours a day to handle an increasing call volume in the town.

Many other area communities run Basic Life Support (BLS) Ambulance’s staffed by basic level EMT’s and use intercept support from private or hospital based ALS Paramedics in order to provide the level of service that Billerica EMS provides. Many of these area services are considering or in the process of upgrading to the ALS level of service where Billerica has already been for years. This is in part due to the added response time for ALS to arrive on scene in critical situations. Other area communities have private contracts for primary 911 ambulance transport and ALS services.

All area communities including Billerica charge for the service, either through a billing service. Billerica EMS uses a company called Comstar. Private ambulance services and or ALS providers bill directly. In the case of private services and ALS providers, it has been my experience that Billerica EMS rates are far less than those charged by privates and are comparable or competitive with that of other municipal services.

The arrangement with the billing service has been in place for several years and the company has been very accommodating to residents who call for information. The primary source of reimbursement to the town for this service comes from private medical insurers, Medicare and Medicaid.

Residents who have questions, concerns or problems with the billing/reimbursement process can also call the Billerica Police Department and ask for Ambulance billing and we would be happy to assist or provide information. In the case of residents with financial difficulty or inadequate medical insurance there is a process in place for town residents, please call and we can assist you in that process.

Please remember that in an emergency 911 is the primary number to call for Police, Fire and EMS response. The business number for the Billerica Police Department is 671-0900 and “Ambulance Billing” is an option from our auto attendant. Additional information can be found in the Town Report posted yearly on the Town Web Site.

Thank you and Have a safe Holiday Season,

Chief Dan Rosa