F.A.Q.

Bills are sent to the person who received the service, regardless of who called 911.

Yes, once the billing agent has received your insurance information.  We bill primary and secondary insurance, but ultimately the patient is responsible for any charges incurred.

Medicare will pay 80% of the approved amount if they deem it was medically necessary for you to be transported by ambulance and the patient would be responsible for 20%. If Medicare decides it was not necessary to go by ambulance, the patient is responsible for the entire bill.

If you are unable to pay the account balance in full, payment arrangements are available.  Please contact our billing agent at 1-800-226-1012.

It is for your safety as there are no seat belts in that area for passengers. That specific area is reserved for extra patients who are tightly secured to a firm board and also for extra paramedics on critical calls.

You may have had a spinal injury which could leave you paralyzed if we did not take proper precautions. We do not carry any special diagnostic equipment so we error on the side of safety and take every precaution we can to protect you from further injury.

Your coverage depends on your particular policy. Only your insurance company can verify that.

No, auto insurance must always be billed first.

Under Florida's No Fault Insurance Law, your auto insurance company may be billed first.

EMS receives a small portion of property taxes collected each year. The County charges  user fees to citizens and visitors to help make up the difference.

Our fees are consistent with regional pre-hospital providers. We routinely evaluate and update as needed.  To view our current fee schedule, please select the link below.

Fee Schedule

The response pattern of how many ambulances or fire trucks is determined by the dispatchers and what is told to them by the caller. If the condition of the patient is critical, the fire department may assist us on the call.

By Florida State Statute, EMS can only honor a DO NOT RESUSCITATE ORDER (DNRO). If a valid DNRO order is presented to the ambulance crew, resuscitative efforts can be stopped immediately.  Advanced Directives cannot be accepted by our ambulance crew.  If advanced directives are presented, the ambulance crew must initiate care and call the closest hospital to obtain an order from a physician to terminate efforts.  If you or a loved one is experiencing a terminal or end-stage condition and do not wish to have resuscitative measures taken, consult with your physician to obtain a DNRO.

Billing or insurance questions should be directed to our billing agent, McKesson, at 1-800-226-1012.

Payments may be made by Visa or MasterCard by calling 941-749-3560.  Checks are mailed to Manatee County EMS Billing, P.O. Box 589, Bradenton, FL, 34206-0589.

Generally, EMS will transport you to the closest appropriate emergency room able to handle your medical condition.  Patients may be transported to a slightly more distant hospital, but this is on a case-by-case basis as warranted by an individual's medical condition and the hospital's availability to receive patients.

Click on the link to obtain the form to make a record request:

Records Request Form