Fire & Emergency Management

Mission Statement

The Kingston Fire Department will dedicate its efforts to provide for the safety and welfare of the public through the preservation of life, property, and the environment. The Kingston Fire Department supports the mission statement by:

• Being courteous, skillful, professional, resourceful, and caring.
• Valuing the faith and trust of the community.
• Recognizing that the safety of the public is of paramount importance.
• Being sensitive to changing community needs.
• Recognizing that all members of the public are entitled to our best efforts.

Open Burning Process

For residents who have a permit, open burning will be allowed starting January 15th and ending on May 1st. For further information contact the Fire Department.

Ambulance Billing & Collection

Objective

 The Town of Kingston Emergency Medical Services billing and collection policy applies to all transported users or responsible parties charged at a consistent rate as currently in effect per the rate schedule shown as an appendix of this policy as Schedule A as incorporated herein by reference.

Scope

The Town of Kingston's policy is applicable to all users or responsible parties, regardless of the existence of third party coverage except as follows:

• Persons not transported to a medical facility.
• Town employees injured while in the performance of their regularly assigned duties.
• There shall be no charge for untreated persons who accompany a patient at the request of ambulance personnel, i.e. a mother of an injured child.

Billing

The Town of Kingston, through its billing service, will bill the ambulance user or responsible party after services have been rendered according to the following provisions:

• An initial mailing showing charges and requesting insurance information.
• A series of monthly statements following the initial mailing.
• A fourth request for payment with financial hardship information included.
• A letter advising of collection action, monthly payment option, and final payment request.
• If, after reasonable and customary attempts to collect a bill, the debt remains unpaid for more than 150 days from the date the first bill is mailed to the user or responsible party, the debt will be:
  • Written off if the balance is $50 or less, or is determined to be uncollectible based on the financial or medical indigent status of the user.
  • Referred for collection if the bill exceeds $50.

Determination of User Indigents

The Town of Kingston has established guidelines for determining whether a person is financially indigent. The Town of Kingston will apply its customary methods for determining the indigents of users.

If the user does not have any insurance and the payment will cause a hardship, the Board of Selectmen may waive the charges. The determination may be made after the Board of Selectmen reviews documentation of hardship as submitted by the user, which should include a copy of the income tax return for the prior year, itemization of sources of revenue for the current year, and anticipated expenses for the current year. All information submitted will be kept confidential.

Effective date: The effective date of this policy is September 17, 2007.