A new regional EMS authority for six Delaware County towns has been proposed, writes Torin Sweeney for The Philadelphia Inquirer.
The Delco Emergency Services Authority, or Delco ESA, would cover Media, Nether Providence, Upper Providence, Rose Valley, Rutledge, and Swarthmore.
The six Delaware County towns are working together to form the regional authority.
Property owners would fund the advanced life-saving care through an annual fee.
The concept is modeled on the Municipal Emergency Services Authority of Lancaster County, according to Nether Providence supervisor Max Cooper, who is also a former Crozer emergency department physician.
The Lancaster County authority covers about 46,000 residents, who pay an annual fee of $87 per household.
MESA bills insurance carriers for ambulance rides, so only uninsured residents would be billed for ambulance service.
The impacted municipalities are currently funding EMS services on their own after Crozer-Chester Medical Center closed in May 2025.
“One of the key goals in creating this authority is to create more stable and predictable funding, while maintaining the same high level of service our residents have come to expect,” Cooper said.
Read more about how the Delco ESA fee would work and how the idea got started in The Philadelphia Inquirer.
