Ambulance district approved for commercial insurance

SANDPOINT — The Bonner County Ambulance District continues to make exponential progress in their ongoing effort to detach the organization from the county government. 

In a meeting Wednesday, BCAD Chief Jeff Lindsey brought forth two commercial insurance quotes for the board, seeking approval on the cheapest option. The district obtained quotes from Idaho Counties Risk Management Program, $144,000 annual payment, and Volunteer Firemen’s Insurance Service, $37,563 annual payment.  

County commissioners compared the insurance quotes, agreeing that the two companies offered similar services. Following the BCAD recommendation, county commissioners agreed that VFIS was the best insurance quote option for the district.  

With the approval of a commercial insurance company that’s independent from the county, BCAD would be saving over $30,000 in insurance costs. Additionally, the district would be working with a company that only insures emergency service providers.  

“The risk person that will be assigned our account was a former paramedic for a long time before she got into the risk business. It helps when you have an emergency service background, you already know general practices that the district does,” said Lindsey.  

Lindsey also presented the current cash of the district, as of last week, as around $900,000.  

According to a forecast of the district’s finances dated back to the beginning of the year, the district was projected to have $500,00 by the end of April. However, the district ended the month with an estimated $1.3 million.  

The increased cash position comes after months of problem solving and tightening of budgets. Chief Lindsey and Commissioner Asia Williams noted throughout the meeting that the district had moved from a crisis mode to a stable mode. 

Additionally, prompted by Williams’ request, Lindsey was happy to share that the district did not have plans to lay anyone off — jobs were secure.  

"There's been a lot of meetings and a lot of changes in personnel," Williams said. "But we've moved from a critical position to a stable one in Bonner County as an ambulance district. That doesn't mean there's not more work to be done and numbers to be moved around, it's that we've done a big haul at this point."