VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — In Virginia Beach, if you needed an ambulance, you would not be charged for it but that could soon change with increased costs for equipment and supplies.
"I can't say enough about them and like I said this is a great time of the year to say thank you to them," De Duffy, a resident of Virginia Beach, said.
Duffy was playing cards at the Princess Anne Rec Center on Wednesday and by just looking at her you wouldn't be able to tell she had a neck injury, over the last year.
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She said the Virginia Beach Volunteer Rescue Squad was there for her when it happened.
"That was my first time in an ambulance and one of the people that was with me said he was learning also, he was in training so I figured we worked it out together," Duffy said.
Duffy said when it came to her bill, an ambulance ride wasn't on it, it's what she calls a benefit of the city.
"It is because like I said my husband who has passed we had ambulances pick him up very often," Duffy said.
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However, with costs going up for new vehicles and equipment, that could soon change.
On Tuesday, a presentation was given to city leaders on a study to roll out EMS billing in the city.
"We are the only city that I know of, really in the country that does not charge for the ambulance ride," Councilman David Hutcheson, of Virginia Beach, told News 3.
Hutcheson said Tuesday's study showed that missed money equates to $14 million a year.
"The ambulances we need to buy, the supplies we need to buy, the AEDs the things we shock you with, and all the other equipment that adds up very quickly," Hutcheson said.
Earlier this month the City Council approved $2.5 million to be given to four of the city's rescue squads to buy five more ambulances.
When it comes to EMS billing the city is looking at a compassionate billing model, meaning the city will not be coming after you if you can not pay a bill.
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Instead, the city will be looking at billing insurance companies, which Hutcheson says is already paid for by insured city residents.
"The folks who have health insurance are already paying into their premium for an ambulance ride," Hutcheson said.
No resident would be denied services and there would be no charge for a patient if they are not transported by an ambulance.
If some type of change does not happen in the future, with increased demand in calls for service, city residents could end up footing the bill in other ways.
"The best thing for us to do is to collect this money, that is already there and put it to use so that we don't have to raise any taxes or get caught in a bind," Hutcheson said.
The change in billing has not been green-lit yet and city leaders will vote on a resolution to begin the early stages of moving forward on Dec. 10.
"A decision has not been made by Council at this point on EMS billing. They will decide on December 10 if they want to move forward with staff work to explore this item as part of the FY26 budget planning process and to conduct an educational public engagement campaign.”
