Naperville ambulance fees to double on May 1

Naperville residents will soon be paying up to twice as much for ambulance service.

The city council approved the first ambulance fee increase in five years Tuesday. The new fees, which go into effect May 1, will differentiate between the types of the care required and allow the city to collect 100 percent of available Medicare funds.

Under the plan, residents who currently pay $300 would pay $450 for basic care and $550 to $750 for advanced services.

Nonresidents who now pay $500 would pay $650 for basic procedures and $750 to $900 for advanced care.

These fees were the highest of three options city staff presented to the council Tuesday.

"What is of interest to me in the increases of the rates is that we can capture the Medicare payments fully by increasing them," Councilman Kenn Miller said.

The fee hike will generate an additional $836,000 for the city but still only pays 23 percent of its actual cost to provide ambulance service.

Fire Chief John Wu said for most residents, insurance or Medicare will end up paying the additional fees.

He also recommended adjusting fees each year by the rate of increase in Medicare reimbursement or 3 percent, whichever is higher.

However Councilman Richard Furstenau said while he is in favor of raising the rates, he is concerned about letting them rise year after year unchecked.

"I am not in favor of putting an automatic escalator in this thing because in 20 years I don't know where that's going," he said.

The council agreed to review the annual increases in three years.