HINDS COUNTY, Miss. (WJTV) – Hinds County is challenging the City of Jackson and Mobile Medic in Chancery Court. They want an injunction against the city’s bid for a new ambulance service.
The Jackson Fire Department (JFD) submitted a request for proposals (RFP) for a new ambulance service, which was never approved by the Jackson City Council.
County attorneys said if the city continues to pursue contracting for services, this would disrupt current operations in Hinds County.
AMR currently handles ambulance services across Hinds County, including the City of Jackson.
Company representatives said the current contract was adopted as a package deal with the city and county. They said it will not work without the city’s participation because the majority of the county’s population lives within Jackson.
AMR said they would need a much higher subsidy to sustain service to the county alone.
City attorneys argued that AMR, also known as Mobile Medic, has a monopoly in Hinds County. They said the county has not collected nor reviewed responsible times for Mobile Medic in years, despite being alerted of delayed times, which allegedly led to loss of life.
“The citizens have been harmed and have lost loved ones due to the extremely slow response time and almost non-existent response time of the ambulance service. And this has been covered extensively by the local news stations. Importantly, how the county has failed to collect or even review the response time records from Mobile Medic or AMR going back several years, despite being notified by the city numerous times,” said Claire Barkey, an attorney for the City of Jackson.
“The injunction is necessary to prevent irreparable harm and is consistent with the public interest. This would destabilize and disrupt the essential medical services in the city and county. There would be problems with dispatch and 911 calls, as the city currently has 911 dispatch issues as it is,” said Ray Chambers, an attorney for Hinds County.
AMR’s current contract with the county is set to expire in 2026.
The City of Jackson asked the case to be dismissed. Judge Dwayne Thomas is expected to make a decision in the next couple of days.