DeKalb County develops plan addressing slow ambulance response times

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - Under pressure to address longer-than-average ambulance response times, DeKalb County is proposing the creation of three coverage zones inside its border it says will lower those response times.

The proposal would create a northern, central and southern zone in DeKalb.

“Our zoning proposal will help make sure we have the adequate medical resources,” the county’s proposal, released Wednesday to Atlanta News First Investigates, said. “This coverage will take 34 units during peak day time hours and place 8 units in north, 12 units in central and 14 units in south. This coverage will also use 27 units during peak overnight time hours with 5 units in north, 10 units in central, and 12 units in south.”

The proposal came after a yearlong series of Atlanta News First investigations showing American Medical Response (AMR), DeKalb’s ambulance provider, repeatedly failed to meet mandated response times throughout the county.

County records previously revealed AMR’s response time to life-threatening calls increased over the past four years, from 16 minutes to 21 minutes. During that time, the county mandated response time for life threatening calls was 12 minutes. Atlanta News First Investigates also found cases where delays climbed to half an hour.

AMR signed a new contract with DeKalb County late last year. The changes include adjusted fees for delays, dropping the response time for priority 1 calls from 12 minutes to 11 minutes, and developing emergent vs. non emergent performance reviews.

DeKalb County’s largest city, Brookhaven, had been seeking to operate its own ambulance service, a request denied by the Georgia Department of Public Health, which instead, last year, gave the county six months to address the city’s concerns.

Brookhaven leaders had been alleging slow ambulance times are putting lives at risk.

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