Calling 911? That'll Be $300
from the hope-it's-a-big-emergency dept
Apparently, the town of Tracy, California (a bit east of the Bay Area) has decided to turn 911 emergency calls into a profit center. Karl Bode points us to the news that the town now wants people to pay $300 for every 911 call. Of course, if you think you might be a frequent 911 caller, they've got a plan for that. For the low, low, low price of just $48 per year, you can call 911 as many times as you want. Yes, that's right folks, there's a special deal for those of you who regularly have emergencies. Make sure to order now!This has to be one of the more ridiculous things I've heard in a while. Does the town really want to discourage people from calling in the event of an emergency? In my life, I think I've called 911 four times -- and three of those were after witnessing car crashes by other people. With this rule in place, I would have much less incentive to call to get the police if I witness something bad happening, whether it's a car crash, or someone getting mugged. 911 is a public service. You shouldn't have to pay for a 911 call.
Update: As pointed out in the comments, there may be more to this story, and the CBS link above might not be that accurate. Another report notes that the $300 will only apply to cases where the fire department needs to respond to medical emergencies. Still seems a bit questionable, but not as bad...
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It's a pretty crap situation if during any emergency you wonder if dealing with it yourself would be cheaper than enlisting the emergency services your taxes pay for.
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The article clearly mentions fee is charged for medical emergencies only. Anyways, how different it is different as compared to taxing ($48 emergency tax also optional!! Wish I could skip my 30% tax and pay per use for all the public ameneties!!).
I would guess they wanted to increase tax, but were afraid to do that hence this indirect step.
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Call 911 when you want to know what time it is.
Don't call 911 when you fell and you can't get up.
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PS: see mike's update.
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This is what happens when you let idiots vote against tax increases. The average person has now business voting against a tax increase because they don't have a f***ing clue as to what expenses the state has, what unfunded federal mandates have come down the pike, how the state borrows money, how the state's credit rating affects interest on borrowed money, etc.
It's just what the right wing wants: Only the wealthy get 911 service. Anyone who can't afford it will just have to sit by as their family member dies.
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Well, duh. Isn't that the point? What else do you want, public health care?
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CA Government gets more than enough money, if it would just stop wasting it on every hair brained idea.
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Yeah, already being taxed at what appears to be the highest rate in the world (Fed + State + Sales + Gas + etc == THE HIGHEST RATE IN THE WORLD, look it up) simply isn't good enough. And the idiotic legislature isn't smart enough to just blow all that tax money, no, their a model of efficiency.
Fred M; SHUT THE HELL UP, YOU IDIOT.
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That's exactly what I was thinking. Why would I ever do the right thing and call 911 if I knew I was going to get charged for it?
So I assumed that the person needing the emergency assistance would be the one charged. But that doesn't make sense either. Someone could call 911 and say that Joe Blow needs an ambulance, when he does not need an ambulance, and put Joe Blow on the hook big-time.
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It seems like in the event of a disaster that took out cell coverage, it might be very hard for people to call 911 these days (yet it doesn't seem worth paying 13$ a month for a land line when you'd only possibly use it for 911).
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(Disclaimer: Personally, I think a private police force would be ridiculous. There are some things that truly do need to be a public service. However, don't make an obviously disingenuous argument to try to take down an idea you don't agree with. Argue the actual pros and cons, but don't make false comparisons.)
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Because you're anti-free market?
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Which rapidly leads to areas being functionally, if not on paper, at least partially controlled by whoever's pulling their strings.
The end results looks suspiciously like China back near the beginning of the era covered by the Romance of the Three Kingdoms :)
(ok, the odds of something completely different happening are not dismisably low, but still.)
the free market is a good thing... to a point.
there are some areas where it should not apply.
(i really want to turn this into a Sun Tsu rip-off, but i can't come up with anything to fill the rest of the lines :D )
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So we'd be right back where we are now.
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And a public police force is distinguishable from gangs & the mafia right now?
I fear less from thugs than I do police officers. Thugs generally leave you alone if you leave them alone. Police officers make it a point to get into everyone's business.
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I haven't ever had cancer. Therefore, people who claim they have must be imagining it because if *I* haven't experienced it, it must not be real.
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"shoot the shit"?
i have never heard that particular euphemism.
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This must have something to do with the real estate market in the area of Tracy dropping in value dramtically and tax revenues dropping with it.
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Paying extra?
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Re: Paying extra? A possible exception.
But every call would be pretty preposterous, and potentially deadly.
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Re: Re: Paying extra? A possible exception.
So? Lack of health care is potentially deadly, but that's not a "public service" in the US.
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Re: Re: Re: Paying extra? A possible exception.
Let's see...not having a million dollars is detrimental to people's health, as is the related "deadly" risk of driving old cars in imperfect condition, as is the potentially deadly risk of heart and mental problems caused by the stress of not having enough money to make the mortgage payment and other financial obligations.
So are you really saying that because the world is not perfect for all people...ripping them off for the emergency service their taxes already subsidize is OK??? Really?
Of course you're not. You're making an entirely different, and mostly unrelated, stupid argument.
I'm surprised you didn't work in a zinger directed at Bush there...
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Paying extra? A possible exception.
Potentially. Isn't that the way it's supposed to be? It's not hard to rack up a million dollar medical bill and that's what insurance is for. If you don't have good insurance or a million dollars, maybe you deserve to die.
So are you really saying that because the world is not perfect for all people...ripping them off for the emergency service their taxes already subsidize is OK??? Really?
So where's the ripoff? Why should my taxes be used to pay for somebody else's paramedical care?
I'm surprised you didn't work in a zinger directed at Bush there...
No, Bush wasn't a socialist that wanted those who work to pay for those who don't. You're thinking about Obama.
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Re: Re: Re: Paying extra? A possible exception.
But 911 service is so I'd rather stick to the actual discussion at hand. Creating an economic incentive not to call in for an emergency (by paying for every call) would be a bad idea.
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Re: Re: Re: Re: Paying extra? A possible exception.
Talk about sticking to the subject at hand, didn't you even read the story at the top of this page before commenting? Apparently 911 paramedical service in *not* a public service in the town of Tracy, California. That's what the discussion is about.
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Re: Paying extra?
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What accident?
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Ha ha!
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Re: Ha ha!
Our elected officials are usually one step ahead of such brilliant ideas.
http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_14280558
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I can only imagine the scene as Grandad hunts the house to find his credit card to pay for the 911 call, as he's having a heart attack.
Or can he pay after¡
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Nope, not even. Fines for calls that are determined by a judge to be a prank, hoax, or fraud are fair enough. All other situations are too subjective. If the neighbor sets off a big firecracker, and you think it's a gunshot, should you be charged for calling 911 in concern? That's a false alarm, but certainly not something a person should be fined for.
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It's pure awesomeness!
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Help. Fix my VCR
I only hope you get reimbursed for a legit call.
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Re: Help. Fix my VCR
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This is for medical services ...
http://www.tracypress.com/view/full_story/6376328/article-Council-chooses-paramedic-fee -collector?instance=home_news_lead_story
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Frequent callers
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Re: Frequent callers
"Two hundred and ..."
*SLAP*
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Illegal?
You sure this isn't isn't the Emergency Servies in that area that are charging or something?
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Re: Illegal?
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Re: Re: Illegal?
Where I live (in the US) the 911 call itself is free but when the ambulance arrives you get charged for it whether it was an emergency or not. Kind of like ordering a pizza: the call is free, the pizza isn't.
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I think Bill Cosby asked the real question here.
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911 overload
- for latest game score
- about next day's weather
- for the 911 operator to tell something to husband/wife/child/parent the caller is arguing with
- to find gas station, hotel, phone number
- etc., etc., etc...
Also, it seems that new BlackBerry users tend to press some button which automatically calls 911.
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Re: 911 overload
Sometimes the 911 calls are very simply mistakes. I worked for a firm where 911 was a direct outside call but an outside line required you to dial 9 first. I was calling long distance and double clicked on the 1 accidentally resulting in '911'. But, yes, there are the calls from idiots and mentally ill individuals calling because McDonalds ran out of McNuggets, etc.
Then again, there are moron 911 operators. I witnessed a car theft in progress in 1995 from my office and called 911 and the operator asked where I was (the eighth floor across the street - about 120 feet) and argued with me that I could not possibly see what I described from so far away. After a few minutes she relented and put me through. The thief got away in the time I spent pleading.
A few years later I called 911 when I saw a plane spewing fuel from the unfastened wing tank filler cap (I took some lessons) and the operator would not take the call saying I could not possibly know what I was talking about, until I explained that if the plane crashed I would spend every effort to make sure the investigators knew about her. The pilot was advised and landed safely at a nearby airport.
Unless it's an immediate emergency I use the local police station number. It usually takes no longer than compared to the the few times I used 911 and keeps the 911 lines open for important calls. Tracy, California residents should do the same.
$300 per 911 call is insane. The mayor and the entire council are begging to be voted out. Yay democracy.
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This is simply a cash grab using victims to pay for poor fiscal management. Disgusting.
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California already charges telephone users a fee for 911 whether they use it or not:
http://www.boe.ca.gov/pdf/pub39a.pdf
http://www.boe.ca.gov/pdf/boe863.pdf
Essentially they're saying "you need to pay us so we can operate so that you can pay us to use our services."
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More Information On This Is Available
The article notes that the charge is for medical calls to emergency services and not fire-related calls. They'll also be soaking non-residents who call with a $400 bill for the call.
I found the joke at the end of the article distinctly un-funny: "[City Councilwoman]Tucker said one person joked if her husband has a heart attack, she’ll be tempted to light the kitchen table on fire to dodge the fees."
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Re: More Information On This Is Available
http://www.tracypress.com/view/full_story/6376328/article-Council-chooses-paramedic-fee-colle ctor?instance=home_news_lead_story
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Only if your not the one needing life or death emergency care. Wonder if they will require payment before they come.
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The article clearly mentions fee is charged for medical emergencies only..
Which clearly ISN'T the inherent intent of the 911 service right?
Please remove your head from your rear end...
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To "interval" -- Your village called. They want their idiot to come home.
I did look it up in Wikipedia and http://www.worldtaxpayers.org/ and The NY Times.
The tax burdens (total, not just Federal income tax) throughout the U.S. are some of the lowest of all of the first world countries.
You bitch about gas taxes, so look at them, moron! Graph of gasoline taxes around the world
You're bitter and want to blame someone, or something, other than yourself for the fact that you're a failure. I live in the same country in a highly taxed area and you don't hear me whining. That's because I'm intelligent and skilled, so I can get the kind of jobs where I can afford to pay taxes and not have it hurt my standard of living. But you want everyone to go without basic services, while their state goes bankrupt, because you're too stupid to hold down a decent job. You're all in favor of having 911 service, police, fire, rescue, world-class roads, top-notch public schools, and all of the other advantages of living here. But you don't want to pay for it. Well suck it up, get some job skills, and quit whining. Want sales tax to eat up less of your income? Get a job where you make enough money that you don't live hand-to-mouth, spending every cent in your meager paycheck while taking out "payday loans" to pay for cartons of cigarettes, lottery tickets, and repairs to your clunker of a car.
We will wait while you make up shit about some imaginary high-paying job you have or about some company that you claim to own. But, like you so aptly demonstrated, you don't know jack shit about taxes and have no business voting on them. Next time, watch who you call "idiot" little boy.
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not as bad as ...
I should note this was from racist police beating me over the head with a flashlight and using their tazer on my throat.. I guess being white in the town you grew up in is against the law now ... I was a bit drunk but I dont think thats cause either. I wasn't charged with anything, but tazed and beated with a blunt object until i was comatose for several hours and left with thousands of dollars in medical bills and transportation by the FD.
You've got to love it ...
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Wow
Now, I need to go work on my girlfriend’s laptop! Haha ;)
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Re: Wow
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umm, OK but there are related links
http://www.tracypress.com/view/full_story/2763666/article-Second-Thoughts--Paramedic-fees-E xhibit-A-of-new-normal?
"(Note that the money generated by the fees will go to the city’s general fund. Churchill said there’s an ethical understanding the money will “protect service from being reduced,” but I know of no in-writing guarantee.)"
Yeeeeeeaaaaah.
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So if you call 911 do you have to specifically say "I need help, but don't send those costly firefighters, tell them to stay home, I want an ambulance ONLY!"?
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Who Pays?
The caller, the owner of the line, or the recipient of the 911 service?
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:Hello ?
911 Operator: Thank you for calling 911, before we proceed may I have your Credit Card number and the expiratin date please?
911 Caller: click.
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So...
I think they are INSANE. If I witness a car crash and I call 911 and the fire department comes... they're going to bill ME $300?!
Insane in the membrane!
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fire trucks and ambulances
I guess whenever you call you have to make sure you say loud and clear for the audio-tape, "DO NOT send a fire truck, I only need an ambulance."
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It's a first responder strategy. It assumes that time is of the essence, and that calling the FD (who have staff trained in dealing with other emergencies not necessary of a "burning" nature) along too attempts to ensure that help will arrive as fast as it can.
I understand why it's done (it happens in my state). I just don't get why, in this case, this was decided upon as the best way to pay for it.
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Fire response
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Scholarship
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911
ride to a hospital, and 6 hours in emergency, where nothing happen. I was ready to walk out.
The Ambulence charge me $1500, and emg charged me $2000.
The Doc finally came in and said, we will keep you overnite for Observation. Another $2000, and still nothing done.
I was finally discharged 2 days later, with no problem found.
Total coast, $29,000. My cardiologist, walk in after the 2nd day, stay 1min 52 seconds, she acted like a bitch, and left in a hurry. she charged $165.00 for the 2min.
Bottom line, do not every call 911, and refuse to stay in a hospital if you can wald out.
JJ
Doctors are running a racket.
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911
ride to a hospital, and 6 hours in emergency, where nothing happen. I was ready to walk out.
The Ambulence charge me $1500, and emg charged me $2000.
The Doc finally came in and said, we will keep you overnite for Observation. Another $2000, and still nothing done.
I was finally discharged 2 days later, with no problem found.
Total coast, $29,000. My cardiologist, walk in after the 2nd day, stayed 1min 52 seconds, she acted like a bitch, and left in a hurry. she charged $165.00 for the 2min.
Bottom line, do not every call 911, and refuse to stay in a hospital overnite if you can walk out.
JJ
Doctors are running a racket.
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911
ride to a hospital, and 6 hours in emergency, where nothing happen. I was ready to walk out.
The Ambulence charge me $1500, and emg charged me $2000.
The Doc finally came in and said, we will keep you overnite for Observation. Another $2000, and still nothing done.
I was finally discharged 2 days later, with no problem found.
Total coast, $29,000. My cardiologist, walk in after the 2nd day, stayed 1min 52 seconds, she acted like a bitch, and left in a hurry. she charged $165.00 for the 2min.
Bottom line, do not every call 911, and refuse to stay in a hospital overnite if you can walk out.
JJ
Doctors are running a racket.
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paying for 911
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911 Bill
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If a car crashes and injuries are minimum they wouldn't investigate anyways as a priority no matter how many times you ring their phone.
911 is abused in so many ways you would think twice about it if you knew what kind of calls actually go thru.
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