PENDER COUNTY — The volunteer Union Rescue Squad has ceased emergency medical services to its district following the termination of its contract by Pender EMS and Fire.
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Union Rescue Squad, operating in Willard and Penderlea, is currently unable to provide services through Monday, Aug. 4. The temporary lapse began on Tuesday, July 29..
Chair Commissioner Randy Burton told Port City Daily EMS services in the Union district will be covered by Pender EMS staff at the Penderlea Fire Department in the interim, with no impact to emergency response.
For 20 years, Pender Fire and EMS has had a contract with Union, which includes Pender EMS providing a paid EMT for Union and a paramedic. However, on Aug. 4, Pender County commissioners are scheduled to vote to take over Union’s operations; this comes as the county is also working out a merger with Pender Fire and EMS.
Yet, Union Rescue Chief Diane Giddeons explained to commissioners during public comment at its July 28 meeting she received notice from PEMSF Chief Everett Baysden three days earlier that the organization would be terminating their contract. The letter noted Pender EMS and Fire had previously notified the county and Union on July 9 that it would cease providing staffing effective July 22.
According to a letter sent by Baysden, PEMSF attributed the contract’s abrupt ending to “ongoing uncertainty and liability.” The termination would lead to removal of equipment as well.
Port City Daily reached out to Baysden and Union Rescue to learn more, but neither responded by press.
This is the latest in a series of escalated tensions between Union Rescue Squad and PEMSF over the past year. Last October, PEMSF introduced a new, non-negotiable contract, proposing a requirement for Union Rescue to respond to at least 60% of all calls in its district. Union deemed this unsustainable and when the rescue refused to sign the revised terms, PEMSF issued an official 90-day notice of contract termination, effective Jan. 22.
Despite initial communication breakdowns, the two parties eventually met in January, agreeing to pause the dispute for further negotiations.
Pender County commissioners began to intervene, with a resolution passed in March, to initiate a merger of PEMSF into county operations. As part of the acquisition, commissioners unanimously approved a motion to subcontract Union Rescue Squad under the county’s supervision on April 22.
The finalized contract must meet all state, county, and medical director requirements and still is being completed, but it’s scheduled to be considered by commissioners next Monday.
The cost of the contract to the county is $777,380 for the first year, for both operational and capital expenses. The new contract also elevates Union Rescue Squad to an advanced-EMT-level provider, matching the minimum service level provided by PEMSF in other districts. Union is currently seeking applicants for an A-EMT to fulfill this role.
In order to reach state and county requirements for an EMS provider, Union is granted a 90-day grace period in order to reach compliance. If commissioners approve the contract, Union will be allowed to resume operating at a basic-EMT level until an A-EMT is hired and all requirements are met.
Giddeons said she expects the state certification to be a quick process, but it could take more time to find an A-EMT.
In North Carolina, the primary state requirements for EMS providers revolve around personnel credentialing. While a basic EMT focuses on essential emergency care, an advanced EMT has an expanded scope allowing for more advanced procedures like initiating IVs and administering a wider range of medications.
However, before Pender EMS terminated the Union contract on July 29, Giddeons said she spoke on the phone with PEMSF representative Mark Haraway on July 21 about an interim plan Pender EMS and Fire were working on with Union. The interim plan was intended to allow Union to continue services while it transitions to the county.
The letter detailed that PEMSF had proposed deploying a quick response vehicle in the Union District as an alternative to continued full service from Union, but asserted this option proved unsuitable to Giddeons. The correspondence indicated she was not prepared for the transition despite prior notification.
Giddeons explained to commissioners she wasn’t clear how the transition would fully work because the contracts with the county weren’t certified yet, particularly when it came to addressing continuous service. She added that the letter terminating the Pender EMS and Union contract contradicted what she thought were “good working propositions” about interim coverage.
“This is very, very, very concerning,” Commissioner Jimmy Tate said at the meeting. “I’m highly upset about the Union situation.”
Tate, who represents the affected district which includes Willard, Watha, Penderlea, and Maple Hill, has been actively working with both PEMSF and Union to advocate for Union Rescue Squad’s continued operation. His efforts have focused on facilitating cooperation between the two organizations and ensuring citizens receive timely EMS services.
He said he was not notified of the contract termination prior to the meeting and had been receiving calls from constituents about the situation, yet could not provide answers.
“We’re Willard, we are informed people. We know this service is going to still be provided by Pender EMS or whoever’s going to be providing. But Union deserved to know prior to today that that was going to end and I would have liked to have been involved in those discussions,” Tate said.
Burton cited Pender EMS and Union’s contract disputes as further rationale for the planned merger with the county.
“Unfortunately, when you give taxpayer money to a private company, that accountability goes away. When the private company operates, they operate at their whim.” Burton said. “It’s another reason that once the acquisition takes place, the full accountability to the citizens will lie within their elected officials and the Board of County Commissioners and the county manager.”
During the July 28 meeting, Commissioner Tate asked county attorney Trey Thurman if there was any way to speed up the process to vote to approve the Union contract in the current meeting.
“I want to be clear, we don’t have a contract with Pender Fire and EMS,” Thurman said in response. “They subcontract with Union Rescue. We don’t control that. We don’t have a contract as it stands now with Union, it’s proposed that we will, but as it stands now, we do not.”
Thurman further explained commissioners could not fast-track the process because any new operational arrangement for Union would first require an amended EMS system plan to be submitted and approved by the North Carolina Office of Emergency Medical Services.
Burton told PCD he “fully supports” working through the details and approving Union’s contract on Aug. 4.
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