When emergencies happen, response time matters. Ground ambulance service is often the critical link between a patient and lifesaving care.
No matter where you live in Fremont County, reliable ambulance service is essential for:
- growing families
- seniors
- ranchers and farmers
- industrial workers
- recreational tourists
- rural residents
- and others.
Yet EMS and ambulance services find themselves in a difficult position. For about 10 years the services have shifted from being county-operated to a variety of private contractors. In recent years services have been underfunded while reimbursement rates have declined. County-owned equipment has gotten old with very limited funding for replacement or upgrades.
In a county as large as Fremont County highly trained EMS professionals travel long distances to respond to challenging conditions, and provide advanced medical care long before a patient reaches a hospital. But with limited vehicles, getting to a patient quickly is inconsistent. The wait is often about 20 minutes if the patient is in Riverton or Lander but can be up to 2 hours for remote and rural areas.
The ¾-cent ballot initiative was developed by the county’s municipal leaders through a cooperative effort, with the goal of stabilizing EMS funding, and moving towards system improvements.
Stabilizing funding helps support:
- staffing
- equipment
- ambulance fleets
- station locations
- response capacity
Essential services are not measured by how often we think about them. They are measured by how much we rely on them when they matter most. For strokes, heart attacks, vehicle accidents, ranch and industrial injuries, recreational emergencies; these are the times we county on our essential services to stand strong.
Vote yes for the 3/4 cent sales tax for essential services.
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