Residents question ALS services
Townsend
By Karen Mann Journal Correspondent

A public hearing to discuss merging the Fire and Emergency Medical Services Departments became a debate on whether the EMS department should continue to operate at the advanced life support level.

Police Chief Erving Marshall started the discussion about funding the ALS service, saying this was one issue that needed to be resolved before the two departments became one.

He wanted to know how town officials planned on paying for Townsend to operate the ALS ser- vice while predicting a $450,000 town deficit for the next fiscal year.

"Are we going to ask for more state aid? Are we going to cut funding to other departments? These funding issues need to be addressed before we merge the two departments together," Marshall said.

The public hearing was held on Nov. 6 at the town hall, so residents could get the chance to hear the proposal before the special town meeting.

Voters will face an article at the special town meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 14, which would put in place a bylaw that reads, "there shall be a fire and ambulance department."

The first day of the merged department would be July 1, 2007.

Fire Chief William Donahue touched upon this issue in a power point presentation he gave at the beginning of the meeting.

According to a report submitted by the Fire and EMS Merger Committee, in 2006, the EMS department is being funded by two sources, $250,000 from the EMS reserve receipt account and $215,474 from tax dollars.

The report also says that when the option of having the ALS service in Townsend was discussed back in 2004, it was never determined that the service would be selffunded.

Selectman David Chenelle said the financial issues would not change whether the two departments merged together or not.

"Let's concentrate on the merger, not whether to take ALS on or off the table," Chenelle said.

He asked Andrea Wood, the financial committee secretary, what the monetary savings to the town would be if there were to be single department.

The merger calls for shifting two EMS workers to a "fire function" position.

Because of this, Woods said, there would be an immediate savings of $9,919 from the changed workers compensation cost.

Wood warned selectmen the town would run the risk of having to pay out more money for disability issues. The insurance plan offered to firefighters covers 100 percent of medical costs, along with a $600 stipend per week. The plan for EMS workers covers only 70 percent.

The report submitted to the selectmen and the public also highlights two other areas where money could be saved. If the two departments were to merge, EMS workers

could go to the Massachusetts Fire Academy to take certain required classes. Currently the department pays private instructors to teach the classes at about $360 per class.

Donahue predicts the amount of money spent on administrative costs and overall expenses will decrease by combining the two departments.

He said the merger is not about saving a lot of money in the short-term, but rather streamlining resources and reducing future costs.

"Better staffing is the number one benefit," said Donahue.

By having two EMS responders who are also firefighters, Donahue said he would be able to send a truck out fully manned.

"We are only staffed for one call," said Donahue. "If there are multiple calls, it's a crapshoot."

He said the merger would lead to an improved response for residents and an improved level of safety for his responders.

Donahue said he is not looking for an increased budget for the department; he would simply combine the two budgets. He said he would wait until the start of the next fiscal year to combine the budgets.