Wyomingites Feel Ambulance Service Should Be Essential Service

Braden Gunem

CHEYENNE - A strong majority of Wyoming citizens believe Emergency Medical Services such as ambulance service should be considered an essential service and are willing to pay at least something to make sure EMS is available.

Those are the highlights of a phone survey of over 1,003 Wyoming citizens age 18 and over, commissioned by AARP Wyoming and performed by American Directions Research Group.

”In the last 10 years, we have seen 16 EMS providers consolidate or fold in Wyoming,” says AARP Wyoming’s Tom Lacock. “This survey shows Wyomingites see ambulance services as important and are willing to support EMS.”

Eight-in-10 Wyoming adults surveyed agree that EMS should be considered an essential government service. The survey suggests 73% of Wyomingites believe communities should pay for EMS in the same way they pay for police and fire department services. This question had bipartisan appeal with Democrats (89%), Independents (72%) and Republicans (69%) all supporting the idea that communities should pay for EMS similar to police and fire.

Wyomingites are also willing to pay a little more to support EMS in the State, with 83% of those surveyed suggesting they would be willing to pay at least $5 more per year to support the service. Nearly 30% said they would be willing to pay $50 or more a year towards EMS sustainability, while 13% are willing to pay $5-9 per year; 12% are willing to pay $20-29 per year. The survey suggests 17% of those asked are unwilling to pay anything to sustain EMS in the state.

The same research suggests Democrats (33%) are slightly more willing to pay $50 or more a year for EMS than Republicans (24%). Twenty percent of Republicans say they are unwilling to pay more at all.

The survey shows a lack of consensus on how communities should pay for EMS services and how much additional money citizens would be willing to pay for the services. Wyomingites surveyed named insurance companies (54%); property taxes (35%); individuals who access the service (30%); and others (12%) as additional funding models.

Other data points from the survey include:

• Most Wyomingites know at least something about EMS in Wyoming with 38% having read, seen, or heard a great deal about EMS in Wyoming, and 33% reporting some knowledge.
• Two-thirds of Wyomingites are not very or not at all concerned about their ability to access EMS if needed. Thirty-four percent of those questioned are at least somewhat concerned.
• Wyomingites report their distance from pharmacies is generally 10 minutes or less (69%), but distance to specialty medical care is far with 39% reporting a trip of longer than 45 minutes. Primary care is typically less than 30 minutes away, with 89% reporting a primary care office less than half an hour away.
• A majority of Wyomingites say they or a family member has called 911 or another emergency number. In fact, 61% of Wyomingites have called for emergency help in the past, with 45% of those calls going to ambulance care and 25% to police.