Chocowinity EMS Issues | Eastern NC Now

Recent events concerning Chocowinity EMS have residents confused about EMS service in the area. Let me assure you, if you are injured or sick, EMS will still come to you.

What Chocowinity EMS has stopped doing is the transportation of patients to doctor’s offices or appointments.  Emergency Medical Services is just that,  for emergencies.  Transports are not emergencies and are still available from multiple for-profit organizations in the county.

Several years ago Chocowinity EMS decided to get into the transport business.  As a result the Town of Chocowinity took over EMS and it no longer was a non-profit organization.  The Town took over billing, which the county could and would have done, which reduced the footprint of the area that Medicare uses to determine rates for billing.

Payments from the County under consolidated billing include a monthly portion of the district tax money, emergency transport billing (which Chocowinity doesn’t get because they withdrew from the system) and Medicare cost settlement money.  With the Town of Chocowinity taking over, the funds available to Chocowinity EMS was very limited. Medicare costs settlement money can take up to three years to get paid.  If you have ever dealt with insurance you know how hard it is to get them to pay for something and sometimes the paperwork has to be sent multiple times.

With the county putting a full-time unit at Blounts Creek this reduced the tax portion to Chocowinity EMS by around $100,000. Billing for Chocowinity EMS was reduced because their service area is smaller.  If the County were doing the billing it would be larger.

Captain Derrick Myers appeared before the County Commissioners and asked to be brought back into the consolidated billing.  This will not be happening anytime soon.  The Commissioners feel that audits of Town of Chocowinity financial records need to be completed. This is under way but will take some time, maybe even years.

Chocowinity EMS is still here to serve the community and deserves your support.  The Beaufort County Emergency Medical Services is responding to the Blounts Creek area.  And as usual, mutual aid response continues by all departments.  There is no telling where you will see Chocowinity EMS and I have had them come to the area I live in west of Washington. If you need non-emergency transportation to an appointment there are still businesses that can do that for you.

I was asked this week by someone what was going on with Chocowinity EMS as they were confused.  Hopefully this letter will make you aware and better informed.  Feel free to contact me for more information or about anything else going on in the community.