Ambulance Billing Revenue Right on the Mark

Fair Lawn's controversial decision to begin billing patients' insurance companies for ambulance transport last year has shaped up to be the cash cow council had hoped.

The borough, which implemented third-party ambulance billing last March 1, brought in about $280,000 in billing revenue last year and anticipates closer to twice that amount — about $600,000 — this year, borough manager Tom Metzler said.

When council began considering ambulance billing in 2011, then-Deputy Mayor Joe Tedeschi , so Fair Lawn is spot on with the revenue it's generating.

Under the borough's ambulance billing arrangement, third-party biller Revenue Guard submits insurance claims of $675 plus $10 per mile for all individuals transported by the Fair Lawn Volunteer Ambulance Corps, takes a commission and then gives the rest to the borough.

Transport remains free to residents and non-residents, whether they're insured or uninsured, because the cost is borne entirely by residents' insurance carriers. Individuals without insurance are not billed for transport.

The plan sparked a bit of controversy because the revenue generated goes only to the borough, not the ambulance corps, which remains an independent and entirely volunteer organization dependent on resident donations to operate.

In the event that ambulance corps fund driving is negatively affected because of the third-party billing ordinance, the borough has agreed to make up the shortfall, but that hasn't stopped some residents from calling the move a municipal money-grab at the expense of the borough's volunteers.

Despite the potential for conflict that the billing agreement creates, Metzler said to date there haven't been any issues.

"God bless our volunteers," he said of the borough's ambulance corps members. "They’ve done a phenomenally good job. Give credit where credit’s due."

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