County EMS still hoping to recoup funds

Rep. Greene trying to recover old debt for agency

 

LAPEER CO. — State Reps. Jaime Greene and David Prestin are calling on the Legislature to take action to reimburse local EMS agencies for emergency calls to Michigan state prisons.

In recent letters to House Appropriations Chair Angela Witwer and Rep. Amos O’Neal, chair of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Corrections, Greene and Prestin called for the state to cover the millions owed to EMS agencies after the state’s former health care contractor, Wellpath, failed to pay for services rendered to inmates in 2023 and 2024.

“Our EMS providers put their lives on the line to ensure every patient receives care, even those within our correctional system. The least we can do is guarantee that these heroes are compensated for their service,” said Greene, R-Richmond.

“The failure of Wellpath and the lack of oversight have left our EMS agencies struggling financially. It’s time for the state to step in and reimburse these agencies – then seek to recover costs from Wellpath.”

The Michigan Association of Ambulance Services estimates over $6 million in unpaid bills are owed to EMS agencies across Michigan.

Agencies, including Richmond Lenox EMS and Lapeer County EMS in Greene’s district are hoping for good news; as are muiltiple agencies in the Upper Peninsula.

Lapeer County EMS provides services to the Tri-City Times coverage area including Imlay City and surrounding townships.

“Yes we are one of the agencies affected,” said Lapeer County EMS Director Russ Adams. “The six million dollar figure is gross billing. Contractual adjustments reduce the amount paid by the State, or in this case the contractor.”

According to Adams, the agency’s gross outstanding liabilities to Wellpath are $138,000.

“Historically they write down about 22% or pay 78% of gross billable” or $107,000 for Laper County EMS Adams explained.

He went on to say, “We have not been paid for 171 incidents at Thumb Correctional between June 12th, 2022, and April 30th, 2024.”

Wellpath’s contract with the Michigan Department of Corrections (MDOC) ended in April 2024, leaving at least 15 EMS providers in Michigan unpaid for emergency services provided to prison facilities.

Wellpath recently informed EMS agencies that it could not pay these claims, citing an alleged lack of clarity from MDOC on its responsibility to pay for emergency responder services.

“Ambulance services that serve our prisons are usually small rural services, often funded by taxpayer millages and fees for service,” said Prestin, R-Cedar River.

“They operate on razor-thin budgets, so when a large company with state contracts doesn’t pay its bills, the ambulance services are severely impacted. Wellpath has refused to pay the several millions of dollars it owes services across the state, leaving individual departments unreimbursed for tens of thousands of dollars. The communities that rely on these essential services are being unfairly punished with the financial burden of Wellpath’s decisions. The state must step in and fulfill its responsibilities to first responders while holding irresponsible contractors accountable.”

In the letters to Witwer and O’Neal, Greene and Prestin request that the Legislature provide immediate funding for EMS reimbursements, while urging the Michigan Department of Corrections to move forward with its lawsuit to hold Wellpath accountable for funding that was never distributed to subcontractors.