The Mamaroneck Emergency Medical Services (MEMS) signed a contract this morning to renew its commitment to serve the Mamaroneck Ambulance District, said MEMS Captain Nikki Deshensky. They have signed a 3-year contract with a 2-year option for extension.

This is great news for the Town of Mamaroneck, as the Town Council and MEMS had been in negotiations regarding this contract for months. The prior contract was due to expire on Jan. 31st and, had MEMS not signed a renewal, the town's ambulance district would have had to find a services provider for the Village of Mamaroneck in a very short period of time.

If something happens because we are arguing and a child dies, said Town of Mamaroneck Supervisor Valerie O'Keeffe last week, "I have that on my head at night. We have to put aside the emotionalism and just do the job."

Because the contract was amended at Tuesday's meeting, however, it still requires approval from the Town Board, which is expected to happen at its next meeting.

Last Saturday, the Town of Mamaroneck Council held an emergency meeting with the Village of Mamaroneck Board of Trustees and MEMS members to discuss the issues keeping MEMS from signing the contract. Deshensky was not present, so no decision could be made. 

The Town of Mamaroneck Ambulance District was created in 1994 to coordinate the provision of paramedics to the villages of Larchmont and Mamaroneck and the Town of Mamaroneck. Volunteers from MEMS provide emergency medical services to the Village of Mamaroneck, including Rye Neck, and Larchmont's Volunteer Ambulance Corps (LVAC) serves the Village of Larchmont and the Town of Mamaroneck. (LVAC is separate from MEMS; they signed the contract early on.)

MEMS operates 24 hours a day and their funding comes from various sources: the Ambulance District administers the operating budget, while the capital budget comes from an ambulance fund controlled by village officials, residents, and the MEMS captain. Funding for the Ambulance District comes from money collected from patients'  insurance providers, not from tax payers.

The main issue keeping MEMS from signing was a new clause in the contract. Members expressed that they didn't understand the extent of that statement and wanted time to process the information.

"The only change is that one clause, where MEMS agrees to comply with all administrative procedures established by the Town Ambulance District," explained Town Administrator Stephen Altieri.  

MEMS board members were concerned that they'd lose autonomy if they signed. 

"We have operated under the same contract for 15 years... and felt that as an independent volunteer EMS provider we didn't want to be completely under the thumb of someone else," said Deshensky. "We felt it took away our own identity as an agency and just weren't happy with it."

The clause in the signed contract has been changed so that MEMS will allow the Ambulance District to have administrative oversight except where it relates to their members and member-related issues, explained Deshensky. 

The Ambulance District had originally offered a 5-year contract, but MEMS did not agree with the extra clause. MEMS then offered to sign a 1-year contract with the possibility of adding another four years. Today, they've signed a 3-year contract that can be extended for a total of five years.

Village of Mamaroneck board members put that option on the table, explained Deshensky. "This way, if the new clause doesn't work out, we can renegotiate. We had originally asked for one year plus four. Three plus two still equals five." 

At the beginning of Saturday's meeting, officials stated that they wanted to help MEMS, but couldn't understand what their specific reasons were for refusing to sign the contract. MEMS members, in turn, said they wanted to continue to provide services but needed more time to process the information added to the agreement. 

In general, there was a sense of frustration because the parties involved could not understand each other's arguments. In the end, all parties seemed to agree that a 3-year contract was the best option for all. 

"Our mayor and trustees were able to intervene and came to the table for us," said Deshensky. "We were very happy that we were able to put this behind us and move on."