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City of Brady

The City of Brady received notice on October 28, 2014 that an anonymous complaint previously filed with the Texas Department of State Health Services (TDSHS) against Brady Fire/EMS had been investigated and closed. They did not recommend any remedial action or find any wrongdoing by Brady Fire/EMS.

Going back to the beginning, TDSHS notified the City of Brady that they would investigate anonymous complaints against the Brady Fire/EMS on July 16, 2014. The following Monday, (July 21) they sent details of the complaint.

The complaint alleged that the Brady Fire/EMS  "has failed to follow the Medical Director's protocol; performing advanced level or invasive treatment without medical direction or supervision; or practicing beyond the scope of certification or licensure; and routinely bypassing the local hospital emergency department".

The Brady City Council authorized spending $612,000 for a Preliminary Engineering Report1 to find what must be done to bring local drinking water into compliance with state and federal standards. This is the first step in a project that will ultimately cost the citizens of Brady something close to $20 million. It will be funded with loans and grants in the beginning, but will leave the city further in debt in the long run.

The current city council inherited this serious compliance problem that should have been taken care of many years ago. See the article entitled "Water - Top Priority for Brady" published in October 2012 for some documents and history. See the Water Utility Department's 2014 Consumer Confidence Report2 for the current status of water quality in Brady.

Reference:

1. The entire agreement with Enprotec/Hibbs & Todd is presented on pages 8 through 39 of the June 17, 2014, City Council Package

2.

 

The Brady City Council held a workshop meeting with Hospital officials yesterday (June 24, 2014). A few citizens attended, mostly those directly affected by the EMS issue being discussed. The meeting was low-key, business-like and non-confrontational. The net result was that everyone assured everyone else that they only wanted what was best for the people of McCulloch County without ever specifying exactly what that might be or how it might be accomplished.

Two questions were raised in the article entitled "EMS Facts - 1":

Who is Service Organization of the Big Country? What is their business relationship with McCulloch County Hospital District?

The short answers are easy. Service Organization of the Big Country (SOBC) is a non-profit corporation headquartered in Lubbock. Their business relationship with McCulloch County Hospital District is not readily available from online public sources.

The long answer is long - REALLY LONG. We present it only because we want documented facts readily available to the public in one easy-to-access place.

The Brady City Council postponed consideration of items F and G at the June 3, 2014 regular meeting. They will require action in the near future. Citizens should be informed and contact members of the City Council and McCulloch County Hospital District board of directors to let their views be known on this important issue.

The issue began on May 8, 2014 when Hospital Administrator Tim Jones notified the City of Brady that the Hospital did not wish to renew the Interlocal Cooperation Agreement that governs EMS service in McCulloch County. The agreement expires July 2, 2014.

City Manager Kim Lenoir estimates that the failure of the Hospital to renew the agreement will cost the City of Brady about $250,000 per year (See page 32 of the City Council Packet linked below) to maintain existing EMS services. The Hospital currently contributes $111,000 per year for EMS and Hospital Transfer billing brings in another $150,000 per year. The two revenue sources would go to zero without an agreement with the hospital.

Lenoir estimates not doing routine hospital transfers will only reduce EMS costs by about $10,000 per year. This is because the large fixed equipment and qualified standby manpower costs of 911 service is not greatly affected by routine hospital transfers.

All that is easily understood. The facts are plain and straightforward until one notices that the current and proposed Interlocal Cooperation Agreement is not between the City of Brady and the McCulloch County Hospital District (dba Heart of Texas Memorial Hospital District). It is between the City of Brady and Service Organization of the Big Country (SOBC). Who are they and what is their business relationship (if any) with the McCulloch County Hospital District?

It is an important question because SOBC proposes to operate an Ambulance Service in McCulloch County that will decrease revenues available to the current Ambulance Service by some quarter of a million dollars a year. Even the most superficial search for facts raises more questions than it yields answers and creates great controversy within the community.

Just why this is so is a mystery. One suspects that it has to do with putting personalities before principles. Our goal is to ignore who likes who and present facts so the entire community can make reasonable decisions about what is best for McCulloch County. Part 2 of this EMS Facts series will try to answer the questions raised here.

Sense and Nonsense Is dedicated to providing the information, ideas and interaction necessary to build a community of people who can be trusted and who trust each other.