Contract between Mecklenburg County first responders ends soon with no deal in place

CHARLOTTE — The contract between the Charlotte Fire Department and MEDIC ends on Jan. 9 and there is no deal to extend it.

CFD sent a letter to MEDIC in July saying the agency would no longer respond to medical calls unless new terms were negotiated.

If the contract expires, Charlotte Fire wouldn’t legally be able to respond to emergency medical services in Mecklenburg County.

Charlotte Fire officials said they can’t respond to medical calls, that responsibility will fall entirely on MEDIC, which could hinder EMS calls for everyone in Mecklenburg County.

Fire Chief Reginald Johnson said in August that Charlotte’s growth is putting pressure on his firefighters, which is why they are working to renegotiate terms with MEDIC.

“We are just looking for fair compensation -- realizing that we have four EMTs on a unit, we are running 80,000 calls a year,” Johnson said. “I think being fair and equitable with the services that are being currently paid in the county and the town, there needs to be some consideration.”

In November, CFD sent the city of Charlotte a memorandum of understanding, which said: “... MEDIC has yet to substantively address the detailed list of proposed revision sent by CFD in August … There have been no discussions with MEDIC that demonstrates a willingness to renegotiation the contract.”

It also said it proposed a memorandum of understanding that if approved, would allow CFD to continue to respond to medical calls when the contract expires Jan. 9. until a new contract is finalized.

MEDIC’s executive director addressed the issue more than two weeks later in front of Mecklenburg County commissioners saying they’ve had numerous meetings internally and with local leaders to go over the proposed revisions.

MEDIC said it sent a memorandum of understanding to CFD asking to extend negotiations for six months.

“This extension will also allow us the opportunity to evaluate all facets of the agreement during the county’s regular budget cycle,” said John Peterson, the executive director at MEDIC.

CFD said it reviewed the memorandum of understanding and provided feedback to MEDIC.

MEDIC said any potential changes need to be carefully reviewed so patient care isn’t negatively impacted.

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