00;00;00;01 - 00;00;27;20
Stephanie Wiechmann
Most people transported by ambulance in Muncie pay by insurance, and those companies have contracts for rates. Muncie Fire Chief Dan Burford says patients who will see these increases will have out of network and out of contract private insurance coverage, or be uninsured. He says that 2% of patients transported by Muncie EMS. Burford also says the cost of buying and equipping ambulances have skyrocketed since the last fee table was passed in 2019, when Muncie split from Delaware County to provide its own EMS service.

00;00;27;21 - 00;00;38;28
Dan Burford
Well, in 2019, the ambulances that we now buy, which are not luxury ambulances, were $120,000. There are 260 now with no equipment, nothing on them whatsoever.

00;00;39;00 - 00;01;06;06
Stephanie Wiechmann
Fee increases include the price for basic life support services, rising from $550 inside city limits to $1,600, and the price you pay per mile the ambulance has to drive, you will raise from $15 to $30. Council members who voted no on the increases said they were worried about uninsured or underinsured people. According to CF Health News, recent changes to Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act could see up to 250,000 Hoosiers lose health insurance coverage.

00;01;06;12 - 00;01;23;10
Stephanie Wiechmann
The ordinance, passed Monday night, includes a clause that gives a large discount for those people who pay the bill themselves without insurance involvement. Burford says that's about 5% of patients. The ordinance also lets muncie's fire chiefs cancel bills if someone requests it in writing. In Muncie, Stephanie Wiechmann, IPR news.