Chapter 2.60
AMBULANCE SERVICE
Sections:
2.60.010 Emergency medical services – Established.
2.60.020 Charges – City council authority.
2.60.030 Competition with private ambulance services prohibited when.
2.60.010 Emergency medical services – Established.
The city council establishes an exclusive system of ambulance service provided by Clarkston fire department, except as otherwise permitted by state statute or as hereafter set forth.
No person, firm, partnership, corporation or public agency shall provide emergency ambulance service within the city of Clarkston other than Clarkston fire department except pursuant to mutual aid agreements.
No person, firm, partnership, corporation or public agency shall provide nonemergency ambulance transport service with a point of origin and destination within the city of Clarkston other than Clarkston fire department except pursuant to mutual aid agreements, and except the city of Lewiston, located in Idaho, shall be and hereby is permitted to provide verified trauma services as defined by RCW 70.168.015 or any other service upon the request of the Clarkston incident commander.
Except, in the event of a major disaster, major incident or simultaneous incidents requiring the response and use of mutual aid resources requested by Clarkston fire department from outside the city limits, this restriction would be temporarily waived. In the event of an incident requiring a trauma verified transport, if the city of Clarkston has not obtained trauma verification, this restriction is waived.
(1) Authority of Personnel at Emergency Care Sites. Authority to direct activities of providers present at the care site of a medical emergency shall reside in the ranking paramedic from the Clarkston fire department. This subsection is intended to apply only to medical services and does not affect authority of law enforcement, fire suppression or other nonmedical service activities by legally responsible responding public agencies.
(2) Definitions.
“Emergency medical services” means out-of-hospital, emergency health care delivered by an emergency ambulance service utilized in responding to a need for immediate care in order to prevent loss of life or aggravation of physiological or psychological illness or injury. Expressly excluded from this definition are the operation of medical offices by licensed physicians and the operation of hospitals and air ambulance emergency and non-emergency transport services (i.e., taxis, buses, and other means of public transportation).
“Medical emergency” means any event or series of events which prompts an individual to believe that immediate health care needs cannot be met by the individual him/herself or his/her family.
“Nonemergency ambulance transport services” means the nonemergency transport service by ambulance of a patient to and/or between home, hospital, care facility, medical office or rehabilitation facility under medical supervision. [Ord. 1465 § 1, 2010; Ord. 1462 § 1, 2009; Ord. 1265 § 1.0, 1997; Ord. 945 § 8, 1983; Ord. 764 § 1, 1976.]
2.60.020 Charges – City council authority.
The city council will establish a charge for the service authorized by this chapter to those persons availing themselves of such ambulance services; this charge may be established or amended by motion of the city council. [Ord. 764 § 2, 1976.]
2.60.030 Competition with private ambulance services prohibited when.
In accordance with RCW 35.24.306, such ambulance service shall not enter into competition or competitive bidding where private ambulance service is available. [Ord. 764 § 3, 1976.]