BILLING QUESTIONS? EMS of LeFlore County utilizes a third-party billing company. They are Quickmed Claims from Pittsburgh, PA. They can be reached at 877-261-9397.
Q: What if I cannot afford a ride in an Ambulance?
A: First and foremost, in our eyes your health comes before any financial concern… Get the medical attention you need, and lets worry about payment later. EMS of LeFlore County works with our patients, whether it be negotiated monthly payments, or hardship applications (through our billing company, Quickmed Claims). EMS of LeFlore County also offers a MEMBERSHIP PROGRAM to limit any out-of-pocket expense. As long as you have private insurance, Medicare, or Medicaid, you can apply for this membership and pay the membership fee of $60 (Then $50/yr renewal annually). We bill your insurances, and then we write off the rest of your bill. (This applies only to bills with trip dates after receipt of membership application fees).
FEES: The EMS of LeFlore County board has adopted the majority of the most recent Oklahoma Healthchoice/DOC Ambulance Fees Schedule as our current charge rates. The only changes to the fee schedule made by EMS of Leflore County is that emergent/non-emergent responses are the same price… this is because the cost to provide non-emergent vs emergent service is essentially the same.
Q: I pay taxes, why am I getting billed for my ambulance ride?
A: EMS of LeFlore County is a non-profiting taxing entity however, taxes cover only 15% of the operational cost of providing EMS services to LeFlore County. EMS of LeFlore County is highly dependent on user fees to cover the remaining 85% of our operational cost. EMS of LeFlore County operates in an extremely lean and efficient manner, which costs the tax payer on average only $2.50 a month in property taxes. (based off of a house appraised at $100,000 a year). We do not charge a penny more than we need, and we strive to keep as much money in our county as possible. We use local LeFlore County banks for any financing needs, and when we have the opportunity to spend locally, we do just that.
Q: How do we set our ambulance fees?
A: The average cost of an ambulance ride in the U.S. is $2,125, between base fees and mileage fees. Base fees average around $1,300 to $1,500, not counting the charges per mile. The operational cost to provide health care in the United States has sky-rocketed over the last decade, causing EMS services and all health care organizations, including hospitals and clinics, to adjust rates accordingly in order to keep up with cost. Medicare only pays around 1/3 of what we bill. Medicaid is lower than that. Uninsured citizens pay, on average, 15% of their ambulance bills. Our rates below are based on what Health Choice agrees to pay us. The cost of purchasing just one new ambulance is roughly $300,000, and we have 6 front-line units, as well as multiple backup trucks. We are the 7th largest county in Oklahoma, which causes us to put 100,000 miles on each unit per year. The cost of running an EMS station with all expenses included (cost of payroll, equipment, supplies, fuel, maintenance, insurances etc.) is approximately $675,000 per year, and we run 5 stations, again due to the sheer size of our county. EMS of LeFlore County operates 6 Ambulances out of those 5 stations. We only raise rates when we absolutely have to.
Call and ask about our DISCOUNTS: Leflore County residents get a 25% discount. Veterans get an additional 10% discount. We have other discounts based on the amounts owed. Just call and ask!
Current Fees:
Basic Life Support – $1,140.48
Advanced Life Support level 1 – $1,575.94
Advanced Life Support Level 2 – $1,960.23
Specialty Care Transport – $2,316.63
Treat & Release – $400.00
Mileage – $21.83