11/02/2024
Setting the FACTS straight.
Despite what you've heard and/or read about our 86 year-old community organization.......we have always stood up for what is best for our community.
The Haddonfield Ambulance Association (HAA) has existed since 1938, and is composed of an all VOLUNTEER board of directors from the Haddonfield community.
At the request of the Borough, they began billing patients approximately 16 years ago. Billing patients (after an unexpected emergency call) was deemed necessary to help offset salaries and to help staff our Haddonfield emergency ambulance 365 days a year, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. A 3rd party billing company was always used by HAA. The same billing company provided billing services for over 40 other local South Jersey towns Ambulance services.
After the new Mayor/Director of Public Safety took office, she found out the 3rd party ambulance billing service was going out of business. The HAA had not yet been notified by the billing company and had no indication or reason to believe that they were on the verge of closing. Upon notification, the HAA began the process to contract with another 3rd party billing company. The Mayor took this as an opportunity for the Borough to "take over" the billing responsibility in a hostile manner, without seeking proper input or advice from the Ambulance Association.
Ignoring the HAA's requests to delay taking action, the Haddonfield Borough Commissioners, proposed and adopted a resolution taking over ambulance billing from the HAA and making it the Borough's responsibility to bill patients for emergency ambulance services.
The borough then realized that they were not able to bill patients because they were not licensed in New Jersey to do so. Realizing one of the requirements to get licensed was ambulance ownership, the Borough then requested/demanded that the HAA transfer the title/ownership of the two ambulances (which the HAA has always purchased, equipped, serviced and owned for 86 years without any cost to the taxpayers), to the Borough, so they could become licensed and bill patients.
The demand request was made by a text message, followed by a letter from the Borough attorney.
The topic was placed on the agenda by the HAA, pending a discussion/meeting with the borough and clarification of the request. The Director of Public Safety then proposed contracting with another town for ambulance service (which surely would result in unnecessary delays in total disregard for the safety of our residents), or renting used ambulances (compromising quality) or purchasing its own ambulance (at a significant cost to Haddonfield taxpayers) if the HAA did not meet an end-of-the-month deadline (established by the Borough) to give them title to the ambulances.
In accordance with the HAA’s mission, the HAA Board of Directors approved the transfer of he ownership to their two ambulances to the Borough (at no cost), to ensure that our top quality ambulances would remain local for and by the Haddonfield community.
After ownership was transferred, the borough still needed to complete the remainder of the license process. The licensing process took almost 2 years (likely resulting in a significant loss of revenue to the Borough and the taxpayers).
When the 3rd party billing service was going out of business, there was no “need for the Commissioners to get involved”. They inserted themselves into the situation.The Borough/Mayor/Director of Public Safety/Commissioners have never accounted for the lost revenue from the day they took over the billing responsibility to today’s date. They have ignored several requests for the same. It is estimated that they may have lost over $300,000 in revenue while going thru the "growing pains" of taking over the billing.
Their unwillingness to meet and discuss the matter with the HAA, rushing to take over billing (without even knowing the licensing rules), making inaccurate and false accusations against the actions of the "volunteer members" of the HAA, delay in billing for almost 2 years, assuming the cost and responsibility to repair and maintain the ambulances, losing anticipated billing revenue and then failing to account for the billing since they took over, certainly suggests that they have “overstepped their boundaries" at the "growing pain" cost and expense of the Haddonfield taxpayers.
