[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:
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.
Any individual who is the spouse or an unemancipated child (natural,
adopted, or stepchild) of a taxpayer or domiciled resident as defined
above;
Any unemancipated child for whom the taxpayer or year-round
resident has been appointed legal guardian;
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
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.
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.
