June 30, 2015
Loudon County Commission in East Tennessee unanimously voted Monday to renew its contract with Priority Ambulance to provide exclusive emergency and nonemergency service to the county.
The vote, which came at the commission’s regular meeting, approves a new contract with an initial term of one year that goes into effect July 1 with the possibility for five annual renewals.
“Since January, Priority Ambulance has provided service that is nothing short of exemplary,” Loudon County Mayor Buddy Bradshaw said. “In talking with my friends in the police and fire departments, you would be hard-pressed to find a single person who does not have a 100 percent positive experience with the company. I cannot strongly enough iterate my stance on the quality of service Priority brings to Loudon County, and I am pleased to continue that positive relationship.”
Initially, County Commission voted unanimously to approve Priority Ambulance as the exclusive emergency and nonemergency ambulance service provider in January 2015. During that six-month contract term, Priority Ambulance improved response time compliance by more than 40 percent from the previous year.
“The majority of our EMTs and paramedics call this county our home,” said Travis Estes, EMS director for Priority Ambulance in Loudon County. “We are committed to serving our friends and neighbors with the best equipment, vehicles and training available. We are grateful to Loudon County for its trust, and we will continue to raise the standard of emergency medical care in our community.”
Priority Ambulance serves the county with five state-of-the-art Mercedes-Benz advanced life support (ALS) ambulances located at permanent stations in Loudon County, as well as a four-wheel drive critical care ambulance for emergency and interfacility transports.
Priority Ambulance’s Loudon County management team members are lifelong residents of the county with decades of experience overseeing ambulance services throughout East Tennessee. Dennis Rowe, director of operations in East Tennessee, has nearly 40 years of experience in emergency medical services in the region, and Estes has more than 20 years of experience in regional emergency medical services.
Priority Ambulance will continue to provide free standby service for sporting events, festivals, parades and other community events; and host free CPR, first-aid and public safety classes for the community.
About Priority Ambulance:
Based in Knoxville, Tenn., Priority Ambulance provides the highest level of clinical excellence in emergency and nonemergency medical care to the communities it serves. Throughout its national service area, more than 600 highly trained paramedics, EMTs and telecommunicators staff approximately 100 state-of-the-art ambulances with the latest medical equipment and technology.
Priority Ambulance provides emergency and nonemergency medical transport options to communities in Tennessee, Alabama, New York, Pennsylvania and Indiana. Operating as Priority Ambulance, the company serves Knox, Loudon and Blount counties in East Tennessee. Priority Ambulance operates as Kunkel Ambulance in Utica, N.Y.; as Trans Am Ambulance in Olean, N.Y.; as Shoals Ambulance in Alabama; and as Seals Ambulance in the Greater Indianapolis area.