Ambulance privatization far from a done deal

Communities across Ontario are resisting the push to privatize ambulance services.

Last year the provincial government downloaded responsibility for ambulances to municipalities, but didn’t follow up with the funds to run this vital service. As a result, many municipalities looked to the private sector to provide emergency services.

Overwhelming public pressure, backed up by a study detailing the astronomical costs of US for-profit ambulance services, has convinced several regions to keep their emergency services public.

The study comparing US and Ontario ambulance services found the average cost per call was $500 in the States, more than twice the $200 it costs in Ontario. The study also documented numerous convictions of US private operators for bogus transports and unnecessary billing for oxygen, EKGs and other vital services.

Three of Ontario’s larger regions, Durham, York and Niagara, operate their services publicly as of January 1, 2000. Peterborough and Haliburton counties will also operate their ambulance services directly, with municipal takeover slated for mid-2000.

But not every region has got the message. Peel region has awarded a contract for two thirds of the region’s emergency services to Canadian Medical Response, a division of Laidlaw, and Muskoka also handed its services to a private operator.

But it’s clear that the majority of Ontario communities have either rejected private ambulances outright, or are delaying a decision because they have grave concerns about privatization.