when did the city start billing for EMS services? (San Antonio: taxi, taxes)

[majormadmax]

Originally Posted by bigtexan99

Okay. I don't need schools, I don't have any kids. Why am I being taxed for other peoples kids to go to school?

Attention parents: Start saving now for your kids school, I'm not paying anymore.

Fine, then don't reap the benefits society offers by providing education for future generations!

Oh, and since you somehow believe paying taxes is optional; maybe you do need schools more than you realize!

[taurus812]

If you went to a public school, your education was supported by many tax payers who didn't have children. Consider it an investment in our future. As for ambulance services, taxes only cover a portion of the budget necessary to provide such services. I'm just thankful that someone will rescue me if I'm ever in need.

[sleeptech210]

That was my point we already pay for a vast number of services im a single dude and still pay in just like anyone else. Nothing is free my friend, if you ask me 500 bucks is a fair price to pay to have my life saved. I have a separate tax I pay I my own to myself, I call it the life tax! Lol

[bigtexan99]

I only threw out the 'not paying for schools' comments because someone said people should pay for things as they use them.

But no one has answered my original question, was there a time when cities provided ambulance service without billing the citizen later on? It just seems like providing ambulance service is a core function of govt, and one that *should* be paid for out of tax dollars.

Instead the city is billing poeple for core services and spending the tax money on so many other fringe special interest things. Govt run amuck

[smuboy86]

Some cities don't even have an ambulance service, it's done by a private company that charges what they want, be thankful for San Antonio's service. Did you know you also get charged if EMS comes and the person dies or is already dead?

[Merovee]

Originally Posted by bigtexan99

If a city ambulance transports you, you get billed over $500.

When did this start? Why isn't this covered under city taxes?

It's a service that will be needed by virtually everyone at some time, so why doesn't this city budget for it under taxes collected?

Was there a time when it was budgedted for by city tax dollars but then the council realized they could spend that money somewhere else and bill the people for it?

While you should pay your bills, if you are going to have to sacrifice and not have electricity or water next month just to pay for an ambulance bill, and especially if you have children, you might want to consider that you won't get bad credit for not paying, ambulance companies cannot refuse service later, nor the hospitals over it.

Pay if you can. Don't stress and think you have to pay this if you cannot.

In the end taxpayers do pay for this as well but they will try and recoup as much of the cost as possible by billing you, which is fair for now...

[majormadmax]

The only downside to charging for this service is that some idiots will attempt to drive themselves to the hospital because they are trying to save money on the cost of the ambulance! Of course, much like drunk drivers they never consider how much they are endangering the lives of others by doing so. If they have an accident and hurt or kill themselves due to their stupidity, I honestly don't care because it's deserved; but usually they end up taking out some innocent individuals because of their ignorance.

If caught, they should be subject to the same charges as driving while intoxicated. Many studies show that driving while sick is as dangerous as while drunk! One British study by insurance companies claims that driving with a cold can be equivalent to downing more than four double shots of whiskey! Sick drivers have diminished reaction time (as much as 50%!), have trouble negotiating curves and brake suddenly, according to the study; and that is even before you include the effects of many cold medicines!

[majormadmax]

Originally Posted by Merovee

While you should pay your bills, if you are going to have to sacrifice and not have electricity or water next month just to pay for an ambulance bill, and especially if you have children, you might want to consider that you won't get bad credit for not paying, ambulance companies cannot refuse service later, nor the hospitals over it.

Pay if you can. Don't stress and think you have to pay this if you cannot.

In the end taxpayers do pay for this as well but they will try and recoup as much of the cost as possible by billing you, which is fair for now...

Practically all billing agencies will work with individuals who are trying to manage their bills (I worked in this business for several years long ago), usually if you contact them they will work out a payment plan that meets your financial situation as it is better to do that than to turn your account over to a collection agency where they only get a portion of the money collected.

The problem is most non-payers don't make any effort to resolve their accounts, which is what causes people to get back credit (although most already have poor credit ratings in the first place, so it's nothing new to them). The bigger issue here is that the burden then falls on the government and ultimately the taxpayer. When non-payers occur too often, the result is either a raise in taxes to pay for the services or a reduction in services due to the unforeseen costs of non-payers. Either way it's us taxpayers that get the shaft.

A person should never not call EMS because they are concerned about paying for the service, but also not live up to their obligations to pay afterward because they don't agree with the cost or in some cases would just rather spend the money on cigarettes, tattoos or 20" rims on their SUV!

[Bo]

Originally Posted by bigtexan99

Okay. I don't need schools, I don't have any kids. Why am I being taxed for other peoples kids to go to school?

You are already (or eventually will be) taxed less for this than the rest of the public, thanks to property tax exemptions for senior citizens.

[rctsat]

It's just like getting a bill if you go around a barricade and get stranded in high water. If the fire dept. has to come and get you out they send you a bill and I think the police give you a ticket as well. I'm glad they do that, makes people think twice about endangering themselves, their family and the rescuers by going around those barricades. If you really needed that EMS service then you should be happy the city has it and be glad to pay for it, but if you called EMS because you were thinking it was a free ride to the hospital or couldn't get anybody to take you then maybe $500.00 seems like a lot of money. This is one of the biggest problems with our society today, too many people think the government is here to take care of us and fix all our troubles, we don't want to be responsible for ourselves and our actions.