A well-established ambulance service based in Oswego County, which has been voluntarily serving its community since 1949, has now ceased operations due to mounting financial issues faced by the non-profit organization, according to insiders reports.
The news of the discontinuation of operations was disclosed by the North Shore Ambulance Service publicly through a Facebook post made by its current President and CEO, Avery Dennis. The non-profit emergency transporter, located in Cleveland, has been critical part of health infrastructure, servicing the population of areas like the towns of Constantia and Vienna, and the village of Cleveland.
In addressing the public, Dennis indicated that the decision to terminate the service operations had not been undertaken lightly. He reflected that it was taken following relentless attempts to overcome a mounting array of difficulties that have been plaguing rural non-profit ambulance services in the area.
Among the variety of issues faced by the North Shore Ambulance, there’ve been problems like persistently low or unchanging rates of reimbursement, insurance payments being made directly to patients without any provision of remittance, increase in overhead and operational expenses, escalation in payroll costs, and a critical lack of sufficient financial support and funding.
The organization’s financial issues had grown so substantial that the ambulance service had been operating at a deficit for a minimum of the past two years, based on the data available from the group’s 990 forms.
The forms reveal that the service sustained an operating loss of $47,000 in the year 2022, which then escalated alarmingly to a loss of $162,000 in the subsequent year, 2023.
Confronted with these unavoidable financial complications, the management had no choice but to cease the operations of North Shore. The organization is now engaged in negotiations with nearby agencies and local authorities in hopes of establishing alternative coverage for the areas that will be affected by the absence of the ambulance service.
This rural ambulance service has been a cornerstone of community health and safety for decades, however, without adequate funding and facing continued financial strain, it reached the regrettable point of discontinuing its services. All efforts to keep this essential service running have been exhausted, hence the difficult decision to discontinue was taken.
Given the inherent financial complications associated with providing non-profit health services and amid escalating expenses against meagre compensation, North Shore’s experience underscores an alarming reality faced by many other similar services across the country.
For many residents, North Shore Ambulance was not just an emergency service, but an integral support system and a source of reassurance for their health and well-being. Its exit leaves a gap in the emergency services network, a void that could be potentially life-threatening.
While the immediate concern is to ensure coverage for the areas served by North Shore, the larger issue at hand points to the need for increased support, both financial welfare of such critical emergency care services.
Recognizing the value of these services and the role they play in maintaining rural and community health, it’s essential to strategize for improved backing and adequate operational funding. This can ensure these services don’t just survive, but continue to flourish and serve their communities.
As North Shore Ambulance closes its doors, it leaves behind a community grappling with the harsh implications of its loss, and lays bare the startling need for tangible improvements in the support and funding of non-profit rural ambulance services nationwide.