WALLINGFORD, PA — A proposed entity that could combine six Delaware County towns' emergency medical services (EMS) and govern them under a public authority has a new name — and a date set for a vote from local officeholders.
When Crozer Health shut down last year, much of Delco lost its primary service for responding to medical emergencies. Since then, local officials have discussed creating a regional EMS authority for Media, Nether Providence, Rose Valley, Rutledge, Swarthmore and Upper Providence.
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The authority, called the Municipal Emergency Medical Services Authority of Delaware County, will form after each town's governing body votes on whether to join.
A public hearing for all six towns is set for 7 p.m. Sept. 2 in the auditorium of Strath Haven Middle School (200 S Providence Road, Wallingford).
Directly afterward, each town's governing body will hold hearings with their respective residents to discuss whether to join — and who will represent them on the authority's board.
New Name
For months, a working group of local officials and emergency-service personnel has been developing a framework for this multi-town EMS alliance — a structure becoming more common throughout Pennsylvania.
First, the proposed authority was called the Delaware County Emergency Services Authority. But during a public meeting in April, several residents found that name confusing, since the authority doesn't include other emergency services such as police and fire.
In response, the working group has given it a new title: the Municipal Emergency Medical Services Authority of Delaware County.
Local Governance
The bankruptcy of Prospect Medical Holdings — the Los Angeles-based private company that owned Crozer — removed much of Delco's medical infrastructure. Prospect has also shut down four Delco hospitals since 2022, including two that closed after the company went bankrupt last year.
As a result, a West Coast company's business decisions left much of Delco scambling for emergency care solutions.
"Crozier closing demonstrated what happens when essential public services depend on private-sector decisions made far from the communities they serve," Swarthmore Mayor Conlen Booth, a working group member, said at the April meeting.
The proposed authority is designed to stabilize EMS funding while giving locals more control of those services.
In April, the group said much of the funding would come from the health insurance of patients who use the service. The remaining cost would be covered by a flat, per-property fee in the member towns.
Patients would still get billed for services. But residents of member towns would get bills slashed in half if they're uninsured or paying off a deductible.
This week, working group members told Patch they've made "minor tweaks" to their recommendations presented in April. The new title is the biggest change.
Who's In The Working Group Anyway?
Many of them are current or former elected and administrative officials. They've been developing a framework for the proposed authority with guidance from an attorney who has helped form similar regional governing bodies.
Here are a few people who have been part of the working group:
What's Next?
Final details for the proposed authority are taking shape. One major factor is the potential involvement of Main Line Health, which has its own EMS and operates Riddle Hospital in Media.
Main Line Health recently contacted the working group about collaborating. The not-for-profit health system is expected to deliver a formal proposal for their involvement "very soon," working group members said in a joint email to Patch.
The meeting to determine whether the authority is formed begins at 7 p.m. Sept. 2 in Strath Haven Middle School's auditorium.
Public notices for this meeting will be issued as required by law.
It will open with a presentation, a public hearing and public comment. Then, each town's governing body will hold their own special meetings at the same location that night.
"Each municipality, in turn, will move to the front of the auditorium, call its meeting to order, consider the ordinance establishing an authority for the special purpose of administering Emergency Medical Services, and appoint a board member to the Authority Board," the working group said. "The public will have the opportunity to speak at the beginning of the meeting and during the respective council meeting in which they reside."
Then, the authority would be established — likely governed by a six-person board, with each municipality appointing one member.
Public hearings on the authority's structure and fees would take place in the months thereafter, with the authority expected to begin providing services next year.
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