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<br />City Council Study Session <br />Minutes of Monday, May 14, 2007 <br />Page 16 <br /> <br />thanked the community and the City Council for the continued part- <br />nership; and emphasized Allina's commitment to that partnership. <br />Mr. LaCroix noted that Allina was a non-profit, and their fees were <br />based on the service structure, not as a way to generate revenue. Mr. <br />LaCroix advised that all monies, over and above operating expenses, <br />was reinvested in new equipment or into the communities; and gave <br />an open invitation to any citizen, or the City Council, to tour their fa- <br />cilities, or further discuss any concerns. <br /> <br />Councilmember Pust thanked the presenters for the material and con- <br />text; and sought clarification on the detail provided in the chart on <br />page 22 of the report, showing the number of ambulance calls, and <br />how the assessment process worked. <br /> <br />Discussion included use of basic and tiered charges; government af- <br />fixed reimbursement rates for medicare-eligible clients; reimburse- <br />ment at CMS fixed rates and insurance coverage negotiations; as well <br />as charitable provisions by Allina for uninsured clients defined as <br />"can't pay" versus "won't pay." <br /> <br />Additional discussion included legislative action for commumtIes <br />"taking back" their PSA's and liabilities to the community; state- <br />defined laws for service boundaries; interests in local control versus <br />liability and financial considerations for the community; and changes <br />to the ambulance business since the City's incorporation and serving <br />in the past as an ambulance service provider. <br /> <br />Further discussion included the Fire Department's practice in making <br />certification for EMT status voluntary within the department, with the <br />majority of current firefighters trained as EMT's. <br />Mr. Malinen advised that the department would be able to provide the <br />City Council with better statistics within another six months, once the <br />training program has been operating longer. <br /> <br />f. Ordinance - Discussion of Modifications to City Code Relating to <br />Animals <br />Councilmember Kough had requested that the City Council consider a <br />proposal to regulate cats and dogs for a lifetime license, rather than <br />every two years. Councilmember Kough noted that most cats were <br />