Times Observer file photo Two ambulances parked outside the emergency room entrance at Warren General Hospital. A multi-municipal commission seeking to provide EMS services in rural portions of Warren County continues to grow even though funding challenges remain.

When the Sheffield Volunteer Fire Department decided to leave the ambulance business, elected officials in the area realized that something had to be done.

Clarendon Borough as well as Mead, Pleasant, Cherry Grove and Sheffield townships banded together last year to form a multi-municipal EMS commission.

“We knew when Sheffield got out of the ambulance business it was going to be a threat to Clarendon and Pleasant (ambulances),” Clarendon Borough Councilman Paul Pascuzzi said.

There was a knowledge the volunteer system couldn’t handle the increased volume on its own. “(We) had to augment in some fashion,” Pascuzzi said. “For municipalities to pull that together in a year. … We figured it out. And 2024 is going to be another year to see how that works.”

That commission continues to grow. And while there’s work to be done, there has also been progress in ensuring EMS response to the residents of those municipalities.

While the commission is working together to find long-term answers, each municipality has entered into agreements to provide coverage in its boundaries for the times that volunteers can’t cover, typically during the day.

That has included various agreements with both the City of Warren and EmergyCare, depending on the municipality. Under agreements with the City of Warren, a municipality is billed for each of the calls the city responds to.

Glade Township and Conewango Township have both joined the commission, according to Clarendon Borough Councilman Paul Pascuzzi, while a couple other municipalities — Watson Twp. and Howe Twp. in Forest County are interested.

Pascuzzi said the benefit to the municipalities that have joined is the realization “that working collectively in the best interest” of their municipality.

The Commission has also asked Pine Grove, Elk, Brokenstraw, Youngsville and Tidioute about also joining.

Pulling together has facilitated some options that may not have otherwise been on the table.

“We had asked EmergyCare if we were in a position to have this many municipalities participate in our commission ‘Are you interested in providing dedicated resources for our area for 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. coverage,” Pascuzzi said. “They said yes. They’re in the process of putting together manpower to do that going into 2024.”

That kind of contract, Pascuzzi said, would make it a “whole lot easier for us to budget.”

While the commission started with five for good reason, the group has “been very cautious in the way we have proceeded,” Pascuzzi said, especially when it came to adding members.

And in spite of its successes, there are still funding concerns.

Pascuzzi said his borough received a bill that is “going to require us to do some soul searching. … The mayor and our council are going to have to wrestle with it.

“It’s a significant impact.”

But there’s one other element that impacts work on this issue: the responsibility for EMS falls to the local municipality.

“We know we have to provide that service,” Pascuzzi said. “While we might be able to support without raising taxes, unless we find a solution that’s a little less expensive… or another source of funding, there’s going to be a tax increase. No one in our neighborhood really wants to do that.”

In spite of that challenge, Pascuzzi said there’s still a belief that the “grassroots efforts we put in place to do this was the right approach.”

And the municipalities have reserved, including American Rescue Plan dollars, that could be brought to bear here.

Pascuzzi said he is “feeling a little more comfortable” about the ability to ensure EMS response when someone calls 911. “That’s a big jump in the right direction,” he said.