KINGSTON – Beginning January 1, the Kingston Fire Department will take over ambulance calls in the City of Kingston.
Empress, the company that provided ambulance services in Kingston, had purchased the previous provider, Mobile Life Support Services in July 2023.
However, Empress told the city it required a paid contract costing over $500,000 to $1 million per year for service beginning on January 1, 2024.
As a result, the city put together a plan to provide immediate coverage while plans and discussions continue with the common council.
Mayor Steven Noble said the fire department staff is qualified to handle emergency cases.
“All 50-plus of our firefighters are EMTs and we have three firefighters that are paramedics, so as we move into January we are going to be able to have one ambulance that has a paramedic and an EMT onboard and another ambulance that has two EMTs onboard,” he said.
The mayor said in the last six months, the fire department responded to over 100 emergency medical calls with its own ambulance due to a lack of private ambulance availability.
Common Council President Andrea Shaut said members stand ready to work with the mayor and fire department in the months ahead “to guarantee this solution is the best we can offer Kingston.”
Beginning in early January, the city will have one advanced life support unit and one basic life support unit operating out of the central station.
The Mobile Mental Health Ambulance will serve as a back-up basic life support unit.
The Mobile Mental Health Program will continue to run with dedicated staff Mondays through Fridays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Kingston’s emergency medical transport service will be provided to all those who live, work or visit the City of Kingston regardless of whether they have insurance or the ability to pay.
Anyone with a medical emergency should still call 911 and the Kingston Fire Department will be there to assist.
