GREG BORDONAROIn Connecticut’s world of emergency medical services, fragmentation is the name of the game.
It may not surprise many people in the Land of Steady Habits, where cities and towns often operate as their own fiefdoms, but nearly every municipality in the state has its own way of providing emergency medical transport services.
When the half-million or so 911 calls are placed each year by Connecticut residents, just who shows up to provide life-saving support depends on location….
Wayne Wright, who is the president and CEO of Hartford’s Aetna Ambulance Service Inc. and Ambulance Service of Manchester, said all ambulance providers are facing financial challenges as a result of declining Medicare reimbursement rates, which are down about 8.6 percent from a few years ago.
Combined, the two companies have a fleet of 48 ambulances and 228 employees, who respond to about 70,000 calls a year. They provide transport services to many Greater Hartford cities and towns including Hartford.