Debate Continues in Maryland Over Ambulance Transport Fees

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Montgomery County, Maryland Executive Ike Leggett is pushing council members to revive a plan to create an ambulance transport fee.

Leggett maintains that fees ranging from $300 to $800 would go directly to insurance companies and no person who lives in Montgomery County would ever be charged for ambulance use. People who live outside the jurisdiction, however, would be billed.

Council Vice President Phil Andrews has led opposition to the surcharge, saying it would likely discourage some residents from calling for help.

Andrews said in late October that he had the five votes necessary to kill the measure, and the public safety committee he chairs tabled the bill. But Leggett and his aides have been meeting with council members in an attempt to win their support.