Rescue Squad Asks Newtown Borough For Increase In Tax Millage

NEWTOWN BOROUGH, PA — Faced with several major capital expenses and ballooning operational costs, the chief of the Newtown Emergency Medical Services is asking Newtown Borough to consider increasing its annual contribution to the squad in 2026.

Chief Evan Resnikoff attended council’s October agenda meeting to request an additional half mill in taxes. The borough is currently funding EMS response with a half mill of taxes.

“The cost to operate an EMS organization has grown exponentially. As we all know, everything has gotten more expensive but it’s not just labor and it’s not just fuel, we’re looking at some pretty big capital projects,” said Resnikoff.

Those projects include two new ambulances at a cost of nearly $600,000, five new heart monitors and the replacement of the HVAC system at its Eagle Road headquarters.

“We will be receiving a new ambulance tomorrow for $240,000. It took us two years to get that ambulance. And I have to order the replacement of our 2016 four wheel drive ambulance now because it probably won’t get here for a year or two or more," said Resnikoff. "We’re going to order it now and figure out a funding source for that. The estimates I’m getting for that are between $250,000 and $347,000.”

In addition to the thousands of dollars it will take to replace the two ambulances, the squad is looking at the replacement of its five heart monitors at a cost of $50,000 each.

On top of that, the squad is seeing increases in many of its expenditure, including insurance. “These are not things we want to have. These are things we are required to have. These are things that are not reimbursable under medical insurance,” said Resnikoff. “When we bill someone for the service it barely pays for the cost to treat somebody. It’s not paying for operations. It’s not paying for payroll.

“Similar to the police department, we have people in the building 24 hours a day. We’re paying them whether they are running 10 calls per shift or no calls per shift," he said. "We have payroll expense of our staff plus workman’s comp, medical insurance. The health insurance companies are no friend to anyone right now. Not only are they paying us less, we are seeing a 10 percent increase for employee benefits next year for medical for our employee benefits. We’re looking at a healthcare premium of $200,000 next year.”

Resnikoff said all of the municipalities being service by Newtown Emergency Medical Services are being asked to increase their contributions next year due to the capital projects.

The squad currently employs 55 people, operates with eight volunteers and covers 32 square miles responding to calls from its Eagle Road station to Newtown Borough, Newtown Township, Upper Makefield and parts of Solebury Township.

The squad runs two ambulances a day and one ambulance at night Monday to Friday out of Eagle Road. It also serves Upper Makefield under a separate agreement with the township and stations a medic unit at the Upper Makefield fire station.

Because of its location within blocks of the borough, Resnikoff pointed out that the borough probably has the shortest EMS response time in the county.

“Because the location of the borough to our station is three to five minutes, it’s probably the shortest response time in Bucks County for EMS. Between what we’re doing and the quick response from the fire department patients are getting medical care really fast here in the borough.”

Since 2022, Resnikoff said the organization has “made some great strides” with its medical performance.

"This year, we were recognized for clinical excellence by the American Heart Association for stroke and heart attack care," he said. "I can tell you with 100 percent certainty that Newtown was the most heart safe community last year. We exceeded the national average by 10 percent of patients in cardiac arrest who we resuscitated.

"When I joined in 1995 I was told we didn’t save anybody (in cardiac arrest). And that if we did it was very rare," said Resnikoff. "Now we’re doing some pretty amazing things. Part of that is that we have a two-tiered response system in Newtown. When we have a cardiac arrest the fire department responds with us. With their quick response and their CPR, it allows the paramedics to do what they need to do like connecting airways.

"The last three years we have done some amazing things with our EMS system in Newtown," he told council. "We’ve made it a much healthier and safer community.”

The borough council will be discussing the request for additional millage during this week’s special budget meeting scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 23 beginning at 5:30 p.m. at the Newtown Borough Hall. The meeting is open to the public.