Madison County commits to new ambulance, EMS reports near-1,300 calls this year

Madison County supervisors voted Jan. 3 to commit to buying a new ambulance for $298,997 and heard an EMS operations update that showed heavy call volume for the year so far.

Brady Forman, the county’s EMS director, told the board the service has recorded about 1,293 calls year to date and described December programming that included active-shooter training and first-responder holiday events. Forman said the service coordinates trauma-case reviews with Madison County Hospital and its ER medical director and described transfer protocols for critical patients headed to Des Moines.

On the ambulance purchase, Forman and supervisors said the county faces a two-year lead time for ambulance deliveries. Staff noted manufacturers have informed buyers of a minimum $15,000 price increase every six months starting Jan. 1, and asked the board to submit the order to avoid higher future costs. The board moved to commit to the purchase to secure the current price; the motion carried.

Supervisors noted that committing now does not necessarily require outlay this fiscal year and that procurement paperwork will be scanned and shared with the board. No roll-call tallies by name were recorded in the public transcript for the motion.