Dear Editor,
The hard-working women and men of the EMS, our Emergency Ambulance Service, are an essential service and they deserve our thanks – but they also need our support.
The County Commission has put on the ballot on May 10th a levy to provide extra tax dollars (just over ~$400,000) per year from July 1, 2022 to July 1, 2025. While this means a small increase on our tax tickets, it’s worth it, for the peace of mind of knowing that an ambulance service is available when there’s an emergency. I will be voting FOR THE LEVY, and urge everyone to do so, too.
The information provided at recent public meetings has been clear and to the point: we have a shortfall due to several factors, and this temporary levy is the tool we need to use at this time to address the $400,000 shortfall. These funds will help pay for this essential service, providing reasonable coverage for our large county (two crews) and other operational expenses, including pay rates for paramedics and EMTs that will help us retain the qualified personnel needed to run the service.
With no hospital in our county and no 24-hour emergency department either, the ambulance service and its EMTs, paramedics, staff and volunteers all work to fill that gap in emergency medical care.
I live on Limestone Mountain, near Saint George, which is near Parsons. Like many in the county, I have firsthand experience with loved ones who have needed to utilize emergency services and am so grateful that the EMS and all its affiliated and essential services – fire, EMO, and all else–have been there when needed.
Thank you, Tucker County, for having such dedicated paid and volunteer workforces.
Deborah Stiles
Limestone Mountain