You may have heard the Fire District is discontinuing inter-facility patient transfers from Adventist Health Columbia Gorge. There is an abnormal amount of misinformation about this topic, so we thought we should clarify.
1. The Fire District has given notice to the hospital (in April) that it will discontinue non-emergency inter-facility transfer services once they are able to secure a contract with another provider. There will not be a gap in service.
2. The District is not funded by taxpayers dollars to perform inter-facility transfers.
3. The District does not have, nor has it ever had, a contract with the hospital to conduct transfers.
4. The reason for this is not financial, it is to ensure emergency responders come to your house when you call 911. This is the primary function of the Fire District, its core mission.
5. The hospital has many options to explore to find a solution. For example, their sister hospital in Adventist Tillamook has their own ambulance. Their sister hospital in Portland has a contract with a private service. In the meantime, the District will continue to provide the service.
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