ALLEGHENY COUNTY, Pa. — People in the area that Ross/West View EMSA serves will now have to pay a new annual fee.
Ross/West View EMSA serves five communities: Ross Township, West View Borough, Millvale Borough, Reserve Township, and Ohio Township.
Officials say Ross Township was the last of those communities to adopt the new fee. They agreed to the payment on Tuesday.
In Jan. the executive director of Ross/West View EMS said they were expecting to see a $300,000 loss in 2023. To make up for that loss, they created the ordinance and asked all residents and businesses to pay $55 annually.
The new fee will impact around 50,000 residents. Ross/Westview EMS said the fee will affect households and not individual people. They expect to collect around $1.8 million from the new ordinance.
The fee will be paid to Ross/West View EMSA directly. In return, people in the area will no longer have to pay any out-of-pocket expenses for emergency ambulance services.
“EMS systems across the United States are struggling and going out of business. This problem has been growing for years and is coming to a breaking point across Pennsylvania and certainly in our area. Ross/West View EMSA in partnership with our communities, have taken steps to manage this problem and assure EMS services are provided for years to come,” Ross/West View EMSA said in a statement.
The fee is expected to go into effect on March 1st.
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