Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs says there is an ambulance shortage in the county and they are working to be sure that everyone who needs help won’t have to wait.
American Medical Response, the company that currently holds the contract for ambulance service in Knox County, has been fined by the county, who has waived most of those, for taking too long to respond to calls as part of their contract with the county which may not be renewed as the county is looking at other providers. Just last week, the county opened an emergency operations center after a shortage of ambulances and an overwhelming amount of calls in a short amount of time.
WVLT reporting bodies laid on the side of the road for more than six hours. Firefighters and police officers were forced to transport some patients to hospitals themselves because an ambulance wasn’t available. Mayor Glenn Jacobs says that just because an ambulance might take longer to respond to an emergency call, that does not mean patients aren’t receiving care. He says paramedics are usually on scene providing care until an Ambulance arrives and they are administering care to the patient.
County Commission will review the new contract at a meeting which is expected in late October.
