Local EMS squads spend their days responding to emergencies and saving lives, but now they are the ones that need saving, writes Davis Giangiulio for Main Line Tonight. 

Leaders of ambulance companies in Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery counties say they are facing dire financial needs due to inadequate funding from the state or municipalities they are serving. 

The inability to solve the funding problems is already having drastic consequences. Tower Health announced in June that its Tower Direct EMS services will stop serving western Chester County by the end of August. In other areas, EMS services are in danger of becoming slower and less efficient. 

The funding issue stems from the fact that most agencies are not run by municipalities. Instead, they are separate entities that rely on non-taxpayer money. However, their sources of funding are not consistent and often lead to revenue fluctuations, while costs rise. 

Many insiders believe that to solve these financial issues, townships and municipalities need to allocate funds to ambulance squads. 

“If municipalities increased their contributions by 15-20 percent, it would give us a breather,” said Al Davey, executive director of Narberth Ambulance. 

Read more about the issue at Main Line Tonight.