OREGON, OH (Toledo News Now) - Some emergency vehicle runs may no longer cost Oregon residents. The city held a meeting earlier this week to consider insurance-only billing.
Currently, if residents in Oregon have an emergency and are picked up by an ambulance, they have to pay for that service.
The city of Oregon is exploring the possibility of joining other cities in the region in doing insurance-only billing for ambulance services. This will provide free emergency transportation services for Oregon residents.
City administrator Mike Beazley says the cost of providing the service is increasing, and as the population in Oregon ages, the amount of calls increase. He says residents are already paying for the service through their insurance and this initiative will only make things easier for them.
"The city of Oregon ends up subsidizing the rest of the market when they fail to bill these insurance companies. The important thing to emphasize is that our residents won't pay anything for it, whatever the insurance company proffers or the Medicare or Medicaid system allows," said Beazley.
Beazley says if residents do not have insurance the service is still free. The city of Oregon is planning to adopt this initiative some time in 2013.
