The County Board does hereby ordain, adopt and decree as follows.
(A) The County Board may enter into contracts as it deems appropriate with private persons, hospitals, corporations or other governmental units for the provision and operation of ambulance service or subsidize the service thereof within the county.
(B) The County Board may limit the number of ambulance services operating within the county as it deems appropriate to meet the needs of the citizens of the county.
(C) The County Board may establish regulations not inconsistent with the statutes or regulations of the Department of Public Health relating to ambulance service and may fix, charge and collect fees for ambulance service not exceeding the reasonable cost of the service.
(D) No ambulance service may operate in the county unless specifically authorized by the County Board or by a hospital facility or unit of local government within the county. This prohibition includes both emergency and non-emergency operations or transports, unless one or more of the following exceptions exists.
(1) The West Frankfort Fire Department is currently providing emergency ambulance service to Denning and Frankfort Townships as part of their fire protection district in the county and are excepted from this prohibition.
(2) In the event an ambulance service is operating under a mutual aid agreement with the county, a unit of local government located within the county or any ambulance service which is duly authorized by the county, then said ambulance service is excepted from this prohibition.
(3) Ambulance service(s) providing transportation to a location within the county or traveling through the county in which the dispatch for service does not originate in the county are excepted from this prohibition.
(4) Ambulance service(s) operating within the county after the declaration of a disaster in an area of the county by any legally authorized governmental entity are excepted from this prohibition.
(Ord. 2012-01, passed 3-21-2012) Penalty, see § 113.99