HEPPNER — Morrow County residents soon will have a final answer to the year-long ambulance service provider deciding process.

The county board of commissioners voted unanimously Wednesday, July 3, in Heppner to award ambulance service contracts to the Morrow County Health District and the Boardman Fire Rescue District. There are three ambulance service areas in the county and each must be individually assigned to a provider. Both providers applied to serve all three regions.

The county board awarded the health district the southern and northeastern regions, covering Heppner, Lexington, Irrigon and Ione, and Boardman Fire will cover  the northern region, including the Boardman area. The contracts will last five years. The providers and county staff now enter final contract negotiations.

“I feel good about the way we got here, as the county’s legal representative told us, we followed the law, did it the way it was supposed to be done,” Board Chair David Sykes said just before the vote, “so I feel good about how we got here.”

A long time coming

The board’s vote came after a presentation by County Administrator Matt Jensen, who recommended splitting the regions between the health and fire districts after a series of meetings with a community-chosen selection committee with a representative from each major city in the county.

The committee consisted of Emily Jack of Heppner, Sheila Miller of Lexington, Jerry Rietmann of Ione, Brenda Profitt of Boardman and Michelle Patton of Irrigon, as well as David Anderson, emergency medical services chief for North Gilliam Medical District. The committee reviewed submitted materials and asked questions of the two providers.

The future service provider, or providers, has been a pressing question in the county since December 2023, when the health district gave a 90-day notice to the county that it would stop providing ambulance service in March 2024. After negotiations paused in February and the health district stopped providing ambulance service, the county had Boardman Fire provide interim service, which will continue until the new plan takes effect later this month.

Morrow County leaders received pushback from community members over the county’s handling of the ambulance service provider decision. The conflict was one of the main reasons leading to the upcoming recall vote on July 22 for each of the three commissioners.

Jensen acknowledged the lengthy process, saying he knows it has “caused much strife and concern” among county residents.

“We believe the adoption of the ambulance service plan that’s now in place, and the initial establishment of these providers,” he said, “will allow us to have some groundwork where we can rebuild some faith, some trust between providers and continue to provide exemplary EMS service to the residents of Morrow County.”

Possible staffing challenges

When Boardman Fire took over from the health district, a few staff members switched as well. Their names appeared on both applications.

Commissioner Roy Drago Jr. asked for clarification about what the two repeated names will mean for the ambulance service providers’ ability to fulfill their duties.

After some confusion, discussion and clarification between MCHD CEO Emily Roberts, her staff, and Boardman Fire Rescue District Chief Mike Hughes, Roberts confirmed the two overlapped names had resigned from the health district as of July 2.

Some people on MCHD’s staff have moved into other positions since the health district stopped providing emergency services. Jensen said Boardman Fire has agreed to help cover staffing while the health district rebuilds its numbers.

The two providers also are required to enter into a mutual aid agreement to ensure smooth, full coverage of the county and offer backup support to one another, Jensen said. Each service area requires two ambulances, as well, to ensure care is available when needed.

According to a July 3 press release from the county, the providers are expected to assume responsibility for their areas in late July or August, once contracts are settled and they have the resources they need, such as full staffs. The new Ambulance Service Plan is effective starting July 17.