A reduction in ambulance fees was announced by the province on Tuesday.
Fees are going to be reduced by 20 per cent, which is $85.
Penny Gilson, CEO for Prairie Mountain Health, explains how the fee structure worked.
“Right now for areas that were not part of the previous Parkland, so for the previous Parkland the ambulance fee was $270 for the base fee and then for the rest of Prairie Mountain Health it was $425. The reason for that was due to the different rate structures that the regions had prior to amalgamation back in 2012. With the previous Parkland Regional Health, the base fee of $270 also had a loaded kilometre charge but that was stopped at the time of the government’s decision to look at reductions in ambulance fees.”
Ambulances fees will go from $425, to $340 in PMH, with the exception of the former Parkland Regional Health region; the fees will be $270.
The goal is by 2019, there will be a standard fee across the province.
