COUNTY PREPARES AMBULANCE CONTRACT BIDS

JACKSON - The Cape Girardeau County Commission will meet today with attorney Mike Price to begin reviewing specifications that will be used for bidding the county's ambulance contract.

The county has never bid the contract since it began providing a subsidy for emergency ambulance service in 1967, after funeral homes began getting out of the business.

Presiding Commissioner Gene Huckstep said the reason the contract has never been bid is because only one company has ever expressed a sincere interest. But two years ago a St. Louis company asked to have an opportunity to submit a bid for the contract, and this year, he said, has heard from firms in Memphis and in western Missouri.

Cape County Private Ambulance has provided the service since 1967, first under the ownership of George Rouse. About six years ago it was purchased by Joe Russell.

"We are not raising a flag or complaining about past service or trying to say the service has not been good," said Huckstep. "But we are talking about $180,000 of taxpayers' money and feel we have an obligation that the contract should be bid if others are interested."

The present ambulance contract will expire at the end of the year, but Huckstep said he hopes to put it out for bids in early April so that there will be plenty of time to study the bids and enough time for a smooth transition if the contract is awarded to another firm.

The ambulance company is provided a subsidy from county general revenue to provide the emergency service, but also receives funds from hospitals and individuals for transporting patients to medical facilities.

Price was hired by the commission to prepare the bid specifications because the commission's regular attorney, Larry Ferrell, works in the same law firm as Russell.

Huckstep said he expects the commission will spend several days studying the specifications before a final draft is prepared. "We don't want these specs to be air tight, and want to give some leeway and options to the bidders," said Huckstep.

"I'd like to get this whole thing wrapped up as soon as possible."

Once bids are received, Huckstep said he believes evaluating them will be a rather complicated process.

Part of that process will involve checking out all bidders to make sure they have provided quality service in other places.

While the main reason for bidding is to see if taxpayers can be saved money, Huckstep said quality is the commission's number-one priority.

"We want the people of Cape Girardeau County to have the availability of a first-class ambulance service," said Huckstep. "One of our priorities will be to check out the bidders, and the best price just may not get it."

Cape County is one of the few counties that provides an ambulance subsidy through general revenue funds rather than through a special property tax levy.

Huckstep said as long as the county remains fiscally sound, he anticipates it will continue to provide the subsidy through general revenue.