PFLUGERVILLE, Texas — On Tuesday night, the Pflugerville City Council voted to terminate a contract with Acadian Ambulance Services of Texas, just months after approving the contract in November 2021.
The move means Acadian still has to provide services until July 13.
Councilmembers also voted on a separate motion at their March 8 meeting to reopen efforts to find a new provider, looking at multiple ambulance service options, including public and private.
The termination comes just over three months after the contact with Acadian took effect on Jan. 1. Acadian had been contracted to provide medical care for the area after Travis County ESD No. 2 withdrew its ambulances at the end of the year 2021.
The contract was originally for two years with the option to renew for two additional one-year terms. Under the contract, Acadian provides four ambulances in Pflugerville and the number could be increased to meet the eight-minute response time within the city and 10-minute response time in the extraterritorial jurisdiction.
During negotiations to bring a private ambulance service to the area, the City received pushback from some in the community. Critics at the time said the private service could overcharge residents and take advantage of those needing emergency care.
Acadian was contracted by the City following Travis County ESD No. 2's withdraw, saying it needed more funding to operate and after area voters rejected annexing part of the city into a new emergency services district. The proposition struck down by voters, Proposition A, would have allowed Travis County EDS 17 to provide ambulance services to ESD 2.
On Wednesday, a City spokesperson told KVUE that the City is not granting interviews at this time because the evaluation of new providers hasn't started, so the City does not have additional information. The City provided the following statement:
"On March 8, 2022, Pflugerville City Council voted to mutually terminate the City of Pflugerville’s contract with Acadian Ambulance Service of Texas for emergency medical services (EMS) and move forward with the evaluation of alternative public and private ambulance providers. Acadian requested the termination in February. The City will continue to work closely with Acadian during this transition to ensure a continuity of services which will occur prior to July 13, 2022."
At Tuesday's city council meeting, the City also voted to increase the trash pickup rates starting on April 1. The monthly service fee will be $20.64 inside the city limits and $22.64 outside the city limits. For an extra trash cart, residents will pay $7.44 and for an extra recycle car, they will pay $4.34. The City says this is a less than $2 increase and it is part of a City contract with Waste Connections.
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