Medford City Council Wants Ambulance Transition Put On Pause

MEDFORD, MA — The City Council voted unanimously to ask Mayor Breanna Lungo-Koehn to pause the ongoing transition in ambulance and emergency service provider to the city during its most recent meeting Tuesday night.

The office of Mayor Breanna Lungo-Koehn announced on Dec. 23 that the city had agreed to a three-year contract with Cataldo Ambulance. Prior to this new arrangement, Armstrong Ambulance had been the city’s primary emergency medical service provider for the last 25 years. The company and workers union have since publicly voiced its displeasure with Lungo-Koehn’s decision. During its Jan. 6 meeting, the City Council heard from people on both sides of the debate, and ultimately decided to hold another meeting with all parties represented in order to decide whether it should push back on the mayor’s decision.

“We heard concerns from many residents who wanted to know what led to this decision, why the city was moving on from the Armstrong EMTs who have been fighting to save lives in Medford for 25 years, and how a new provider would improve public safety for residents facing medical emergencies,” Council President Zac Bears said about the meeting on Jan. 19. “The City Council’s top priority is that Medford residents receive excellent patient care and quick responses to their medical emergencies from our city’s EMS provider.”

While Lungo-Koehn did not participate in the meeting, her Chief of Staff Nina Nazarian Chief of Police Jack Buckley, Chief of Fire Todd Evans, and Emergency Dispatch Supervisor Michael Salvi were all present to argue on behalf of her decision to split from Armstrong. They made many claims that the company was not fulfilling its duties, which included slow response times, inaccurate response times, understaffing, unwillingness to provide EMT training to the Medford Fire Department, a $75,000 payment to the city the company refused to pay, and overall poor communication with its Medford partners.

The supposed outdo balance Armstrong owed stemmed from a $300,000 debt the company had reportedly paid the first three quarters of, but not the last. The city claims that Armstrong had outright refused payment last March.

Armstrong CEO Rich Raymond defended the unpaid debt accusation against his company by saying that Medford had not invoiced the company in more than five years, and that their refusal to pay the remaining amount only stemmed from legal concerns about the multi-year request and potential liability if the city did not provide contractually-required documentation necessary for compliance with Medicare kickback regulations.

He also denied claims made about slow and inaccurate response times, noting that the contract requires Armstrong to pay fees for delays, which it has never had to do.

“My hopes are that these answers either more solidly prove the City Administration’s case for this decision or lead to reflection and a change of direction,” Bears said. If the Mayor’s administration continues with the transition as planned, I will ask that they provide clear metrics on EMS response times to compare the services residents received from Armstrong and those residents will receive from Cataldo.”

Medford’s new contract with Cataldo is slated to go into effect on Monday, Jan. 19. According to Cataldo, transition meetings between them and Medford Communications staff have already begun.