Carthage, IL – The Hancock County Board will hold a special meeting Tuesday to consider ambulance service options.
Board member Joe Stevenson called for the meeting. He says he has invited three private ambulance services to outline what they could provide and at what cost.
Stevenson says the goal is to provide a countywide ambulace operation that would work in the independent ambulance services in LaHarpe and Nauvoo that recently formed.
Hancock County levies a tax to provide the service, but some towns have had difficulty providing enough volunteers. Others were unhappy with what they considered long response times.
Stevenson hopes the board members will take a long-range view that will extend service to all towns in the county.
He says things became more complicated when the two towns withdrew from the countywide service and levied their own tax.
The issue of records and billing for the service must also be considered. The county recently ended a contract with a private firm to do the billing. A replacement system must be established.