[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Committee of the Township of Deerfield as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Volunteer fire department — See Ch. 11.
[Adopted 4-6-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-3]
The Township of Deerfield provides emergency services through the Rosenhayn Fire and Rescue to citizens and visitors of the Township of Deerfield on a twenty-four-hour basis throughout the year to the extent that such resources are available.
All persons needing emergency services within the Township of Deerfield shall be serviced to the extent that such services are available without discrimination on any basis, and without respect to residency, ability to pay, or any other factor. No person located within Deerfield Township at the time emergency services are needed shall be denied available service when such services are available. There shall be no delay in providing available service due to emergency services billing.
Deerfield Township, through the Rosenhayn Fire and Rescue and a third-party billing agent (retained by Deerfield Township for the purposes of seeking payment for the provision of emergency services), shall maintain accurate records of all Deerfield Township requests for emergency services, service calls, and services approved by Rosenhayn Fire and Rescue. Said records shall include pertinent information about the general nature of the call and shall identify the complete name, mailing address, place of domicile, location and telephone numbers of all persons requesting and receiving Rosenhayn Fire and Rescue services, as well as all pertinent and available insurance information.
The Township of Deerfield shall contract with a third-party billing agent for the collection of payment for services rendered by the Rosenhayn Fire and Rescue. Said bill shall be issued to the insurance company for the person served, if any, or directly to the person served if insurance coverage is not available. Fees to be charged for Rosenhayn Fire and Rescue Services shall be as follows:
A. 
Ambulance service fees:
[Amended 7-5-2018 by Ord. No. 2018-6]
(1) 
Ambulance transportation to medical facility: $1,050.
[Amended 8-19-2020 by Ord. No. 2020-6]
(2) 
Per loaded mile for basic life support (BLS): $20.
[Amended 8-19-2020 by Ord. No. 2020-6]
(3) 
Fee for oxygen administration: $75.
(4) 
Fee for automatic external defibrillator (AED) pads: $150.
(5) 
Fee for epinephrine injector (Epi-Pen): $100.
(6) 
Fee for cervical collars: $25.
(7) 
Fee for spinal immobilization: $150.
B. 
Light rescue: batteries, fluids, stabilization: $850. Operations such as stabilizing a vehicle, use of hand tools, hazard control, and other scene-related light rescue operations.
[Amended 7-5-2018 by Ord. No. 2018-6]
C. 
Medium rescue: $1,950. Operations include the use of power tools and hydraulic rescue tools to perform activities such as opening or removing doors to provide access to patients as well as stabilizing vehicles and performing hazardous assessments.
[Amended 7-5-2018 by Ord. No. 2018-6]
D. 
Heavy rescue: $3,000. Operations include any technical rescue procedures, including but not limited to water and ice rescue, rope rescue, confined space rescue, high angle rescue, trench rescue, or structural collapse rescue. Also includes motor vehicle rescues that include the use of power tools and hydraulic tools to perform operations such as partial or full roof removal, front/dash displacement, third door access, and separating vehicles from one another for the purpose of rescue.
[Amended 7-5-2018 by Ord. No. 2018-6]
E. 
Malicious fire alarms: $500. A malicious fire alarm is defined as any false alarm that is transmitted by an alarm system due to improper operation, poor maintenance, or malfunction of the alarm system. Alarms will be defined as "malicious" after the receipt of the fourth false alarm within any one-hundred-eighty-day period.
Persons receiving a bill for emergency services shall make payment to Deerfield Township or their agent within 30 days, or provide proof that they have submitted a claim to their insurance carrier for payment within 30 days or receipt of request of a bill. These provisions shall be subject to the following:
A. 
Persons receiving emergency services who have health or automobile insurance to cover emergency services are expected to cooperate with Deerfield Township's third-party billing agent to secure full payment for services rendered.
B. 
In the event the health or automobile insurance company of a taxpayer or domiciled resident does not pay the bill in full, the Township of Deerfield will accept such partial payment to the extent of the insured's policy limits, including deductible and co-insurance requirements, as payment in full.
C. 
In the event that a taxpayer or domiciled resident of the Township of Deerfield does not have health or auto insurance to cover charges, payment shall not be required so long as the nature of the call is deemed an "emergency" by Rosenhayn Fire and Rescue and the Township. This is necessary to deter frivolous use of emergency services.
D. 
Due to the time requirements for the preparation and processing of insurance claims, interest shall not be charged on Deerfield Township Emergency Services billings.
E. 
After providing emergency services, the Rosenhayn Fire and Rescue shall transmit all pertinent billing information to Deerfield Township's third-party billing agent for collection as set forth in Subsection F below. The third-party billing agent shall be responsible for receipt of payment and proper recordkeeping of its collections as provided in its contract with the Township of Deerfield. Payments received by the third-party billing agent shall, thereafter, be transmitted electronically to the Township of Deerfield to be administered by the Deerfield Township Chief Financial Officer (CFO) in an account that will dedicate said funds back to the provision of emergency services within the Township. This shall include the accumulation of funds for future equipment and apparatus needs as well as payment of salaries for part-time or full-time emergency workers as the Township Committee sees fit to serve the needs of the Township. In addition, the third-party billing agent shall simultaneously transmit a transport report to the Rosenhayn Fire and Rescue for its review and approval and transport copy to the Township CFO. The Rosenhayn Fire and Rescue shall prepare a reconciliation report and shall monitor the operations of the third-party billing agent, including billing activities and receipt of funds.
F. 
The third-party billing agent shall be responsible for the initial billing and two follow-up billings. Costs associated with the third-party reimbursement requests shall be based solely upon a percent of collections as provided in its Contract with the Township of Deerfield. After three attempts to collect said claim, the third-party billing agency shall notify the Township of Deerfield and relinquish rights to that billing, unless otherwise directed by the Township Administrator. The Township of Deerfield shall determine if said delinquent accounts should be turned over to a collection agency that will be compensated on a percent of cash collections of the delinquent accounts. The Township of Deerfield reserves the right to determine that a bill is uncollectible and should be written off.
For the purposes of emergency service charges, the following definitions shall apply:
DOMICILED RESIDENT
Any individual whose legal domicile is within the Township of Deerfield. Verification of domicile shall be based on voter registration, a state of New Jersey driver's license, proof of filing a State of New Jersey income tax return from a Deerfield Township address, or other proofs accepted under federal guidelines.
DEPENDENT
A. 
Any individual who is the spouse or an unemancipated child (natural, adopted, or stepchild) of a taxpayer or domiciled resident as defined above;
B. 
Any unemancipated child for whom the taxpayer or year-round resident has been appointed legal guardian;
C. 
Any individual who resides in a permanent domicile of the taxpayer or domiciled resident and is claimed as a dependent for federal income tax purposes; or
D. 
Any individual who resides in the permanent domicile of the taxpayer or domiciled resident, and who is deemed to be a dependent under the health insurance policy of the taxpayer or domiciled resident.
TAXPAYER
Any individual listed on the deed of ownership of any property located within the municipal boundaries of the Township of Deerfield and their dependents as defined below. In the case of corporation, partnership, etc., only those individuals retaining a 25% or greater ownership shall be considered a taxpayer. For the purpose of determining ownership of 25% or greater, adult married or civil union partners may combine their ownership.