Alberta Spending Up to C$40 Million More on EMS Vehicles
The Canadian province of Alberta will be spending up to C$40 million more (about U.S. $30 million) on its EMS vehicles. The budget boost is included in the province’s decision to transfer EMS from Alberta Health Services (AHS) to a new agency known as Acute Care Alberta (ACA). AHS is currently Alberta’s primary provider of health services and is responsible for managing more than 90 hospitals and other facilities in the province. Under a new law, ACA will become Alberta’s primary agency responsible for overseeing acute care services, with AHS becoming a hospital service delivery provider under ACA’s jurisdiction.
Marty Scott is executive director of AHS’ EMS Provincial Programs. He said the C$40 million will be on top of C$20 million already allocated in Alberta’s EMS Vehicle Capital Program, to be spent over the next three years.
“The need for EMS vehicles has been represented with all other capital needs within the Alberta healthcare system,” Scott said. “However, over the years as EMS vehicles haves become more expensive and harder to acquire in Canada, there has been recognition that we need dedicated and purposeful funding to make longer term commitments for our vehicle purchases, as well as to have some certainty around our funding flow every year. So, the funding from the Alberta government really recognizes the need to ensure that our fleet stays current, and that we can order with certainty, to ensure that we can replace vehicles when they're ready for retirement.”
At present, AHS is responsible for the provision for air and ground EMS across Alberta, both through its own resources and 31 contracted EMS ground operators. EMS is available on a 24/7/365 basis. According to the provincial government, AHS handles more than 670,000 calls annually using more than 930 ambulance vehicles and 5,000 EMS staff members.
“We have a fleet of 600 ambulances,” Scott said. “Our goal is to replace about 80 ambulances per year, based on their life cycles.”
For the record, Albertan ambulances tend to be used for six years or 280,000 kilometers (174,000 miles), whichever comes first. Given that ambulance prices are rising—and may be pushed up even further by Canadian tariffs on U.S. imports—the former funding level was making it difficult for AHS to order sufficient replacement ambulances to keep up with demand.
“Buying ambulances is a competitive process, especially since we have to buy them from the U.S. due to a lack of Canadian options,” Scott said. “As well, the manufacturers have very tight ordering windows. If you want to be assured of getting new vehicles on time you have to get your orders in. Besides, the Government of Alberta is committed to making sure that our paramedics have the right vehicles and equipment at their fingertips. That’s what this increase is meant to provide.”
“From our team that has responsibility for maintenance of these vehicles, there’s been a sense of relief due to improving our ability to replace some of our older ambulances,” Scott said of the increased budget. “Having predictable funding to buy more ambulances will allow us to continue to provide service without a lot of stress around fitting in ambulance maintenance into our schedules, as well as the mechanical difficulties that we do encounter in our day-to-day work. So yes, people are quite pleased with the news.”
