Boyceville ambulance district reviews proposed budget of $451,835 for 2023
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By LeAnn R. Ralph
BOYCEVILLE — The Boyceville Community Ambulance District Board has reviewed a proposed budget of $451,835 for 2023, which compares to the 2022 budget of $435,200.
The final budget will be available at the October meeting for the ambulance district board to review and take action, said Wayne Dow, director of the Boyceville ambulance service, at the ambulance district board’s September 14 meeting.
Approximately $6,800 of the budget that is now separate line items were likely included with other line items in previous budgets, Dow said.
In addition, the 2022 budget contained $25,000 for insurance (building, auto, liability and worker’s compensation), but the year-to-date for 2022 is $13,500, so the amount for insurance could be reduced to $15,000, he said.
If Dow is able to identify where the other line items were included and also reduces the insurance line item to $15,000, the 2023 budget would be close to the 2022 budget.
Chief’s wage
One member of the ambulance district board said he would like to see the chief’s salary increased.
Dow is paid $18,000 per year to work as the director of the ambulance service.
Prior to Dow starting work as the director of the ambulance service in April of 2021, the previous director was paid $15,000 per year. The ambulance service also had two captains that were paid a total of $21,600 annually for both people to serve as captains.
The Boyceville ambulance service does not currently employ any captains.
If the Boyceville ambulance service were to employ captains, Dow has gone on record telling the ambulance district board that the amount could be deducted from his salary so as not to increase the budget for the ambulance service.
Dow puts in quite a few hours at the ambulance service and brings a lot of experience with him to Boyceville, said Sonya Zebro, representative for the Village of Boyceville.
Because Boyceville has been experiencing problems obtaining EMTs — just like every other ambulance service in the county, the state and the nation — Dow said he puts in about 270 hours every two weeks.
The Boyceville Community Ambulance District Board unanimously approved increasing the chief’s salary by $1,000 to $19,000.
Dow also receives EMT pay for the shifts when he as at the ambulance station.
EMT extra pay
The ambulance district meeting was delayed by 20 to 30 minutes because the ambulance service received a call shortly before the meeting was scheduled to begin.
Dow said he thought he would have to ask Menomonie to respond to the call, but one of the EMTs who lives in Boyceville, but who was not on duty that night, responded anyway, which meant Boyceville did not have to rely on Menomonie.
As it turned out, Boyceville did not have to transport a patient as the result of the call, so Dow was able to make it back to the meeting in relatively short order.
When Menomonie responds to a call because Boyceville does not have two EMTs to go out with the ambulance, it costs the Boyceville ambulance service anywhere from $500 to $1,200, Dow noted.
If EMTs respond to calls when they are not on duty at the ambulance station, they do not get paid, he said.
There are three EMTs who live in Boyceville who have been going out on calls at various times when they are not on duty at the ambulance station, Dow said.
EMTs in Boyceville are paid $13 per hour for an EMT-Advanced, $12 per hour for an EMT-Basic and $11 per hour for an EMR (emergency medical responder).
If there is an EMT-A or an EMT-B available for an ambulance call and there is an EMR available to drive the ambulance, then the ambulance service can transport patients.
The Boyceville Community Ambulance District Board unanimously approved that EMTs who respond to a call outside of the time when they are signed up to be at the station for a shift be paid for a minimum of three hours, and if the call goes over three hours, the EMTs should be paid for six hours, effective immediately.
The pay for responding to calls when not signed up for a shift is retroactive to January 1, 2022.
When EMTs respond to a call outside of their shift and another ambulance service does not have to respond, the Boyceville ambulance service will save $500 to $1,200 per call on service agreements, Dow noted.
The service agreement with the Colfax Rescue Squad and the Glenwood City ambulance service is $500 per call. The agreement with the Dallas ambulance service is for $300 per call. The agreement with Menomonie ranges anywhere from $500 to $1,200 per call.
Earlier this year, Boyceville paid out as much as $5,000 per month for service agreements with other ambulance services. In recent months, the amount has been zero for service agreements.
Members of the ambulance district board agreed that it was “the right thing to do” to pay the EMTs for coming in when they are not signed up for a shift and that it is also a way to show the EMTs their efforts are appreciated.
The Boyceville Community Ambulance District includes the Village of Boyceville and the Towns of Hay River, New Haven, Sheridan, Sherman, Stanton and Tiffany.
Next meeting
The Boyceville Community Ambulance District Board meets next on October 12 at 7 p.m. at the Boyceville village hall on Charlotte Street.
