YORK COUNTY, Pa. — First Capital EMS has combined West York Ambulance Inc., Grantley Fire & EMS and York Regional EMS in a move they say will better assist the area’s emergency response needs.
“We service a large population, a large area of York County, which includes West Manchester, West York, York Garden, Spring Garden, Windsor township, and Yoe and Dallastown boroughs," said Joe Stevens, the EMS executive director.
Stevens says they started talking about merging years ago. However, the initiative to do it took off when the COVID-19 pandemic started in 2020.
“The healthcare industry is a very uncertain industry, and reimbursement with the state of the world these days, you know, resources like our medical supplies, our vehicles are on backorder, so combining our efforts made sense," said Stevens.
He says this effort will contribute to a more sustainable EMS service with a wider range of highly skilled paramedics and emergency medical technicians.
“Overall, the community, whether they see it or not, is going to enjoy a more sustained service, we’re going to be able to contain those costs, better, which in the end means their service isn’t going to get more expensive," said Stevens.
At this time, First Capital EMS has 16 ambulances and 130 staff members.