Ambulance Services

Appeal Brief

Desastre	FEMA-1603-DR
Applicant	Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals
Appeal Type	Second
PA ID#	000-UHH04-00
PW ID#	16831
Date Signed	2009-02-18T05:00:00

Citation: FEMA-1603-DR-LA, State of Louisiana Department of Health and Hosptials, Contract Costs, PW 16831

Summary:

Following Hurricane Katrina, Rostraver/West Newton Emergency Services, Inc (R/WNES) signed a 30-day contract with FEMA to transport sick and injured patients and special needs evacuees from Orleans, Jefferson, and St. Bernard Parishes to local hospitals and to provide emergency medical services in Louisiana from
September 3, 2005, through October 2, 2005. The contract expired on October 2, 2005, but R/WNES continued to provide services through October 17, 2005, on assurances from the State of Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals (Applicant) that the contract would be extended. FEMA did not extend the contract and R/WNES was not reimbursed for work performed after October 2, 2005, totaling $115,200.

The Applicant submitted a first appeal on November 2, 2007, stating that R/WNES is a PNP organization and that the services provided during that 15-day period are eligible Category B work. The Applicant also stated that FEMA reimbursed R/WNES for the same services under a FEMA contract from September 3, 2005, through
October 2, 2005. Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness (GOHSEP) supported the Applicant and recommended that the Applicant be allowed additional time to provide eligibility documents and a signed contract. GOHSEP subsequently advised FEMA that the Applicant would not be supplying additional documentation to support its claim. The Regional Administrator denied the first appeal because R/WNES had been advised that the contract would not be extended.

A law firm filed a second appeal on behalf of R/WNES stressing that the R/WNES services are eligible work under emergency protective measures, and that its client relied on assurances from the Applicant that a contract extension would be forthcoming. The appeal does not include new support documentation. The Applicant forwarded the second appeal to GOHSEP with a request that R/WNES be given the opportunity to present oral testimony before FEMA with regards to its appeal.

Issues:

1. Is R/WNES an eligible applicant?
2. Is FEMA/Applicant legally responsible for the emergency medical services costs?

Findings:

1. No. R/WNES is a PNP that provided contracted services and therefore, it is not an eligible applicant and has no appeal rights.

2. No. FEMA did not extend its contract with R/WNES, and the Applicant did not contract with R/WNES to perform ambulance services beyond October 2, 2005.

Rationale:

Section 406(a)(3) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act; 44 CFR § 206.206; 44 CFR § 206.223(3)(b)

Appeal Letter

February 18, 2009

Colonel Thomas Kirkpatrick (Retired)
State Coordinating Officer
Governor’s Office of Homeland Security
and Emergency Preparedness
415 North 15th Street
Baton Rouge, LA 70802

Re: Second Appeal–Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals, PA ID 000-UHH04-00, Ambulance Services, FEMA-1603-DR-LA, Project Worksheets (PW) 16831

Dear Colonel Kirkpatrick:

This is in response to your letter dated September 16, 2008, which transmitted the referenced second
appeal on behalf of Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals (Applicant). The Applicant forwarded a second appeal on behalf of Rostraver/West Newton Emergency Services, Inc (R/WNES), a Pennsylvania-based private non-profit (PNP), for costs totaling $115,200.

Following Hurricane Katrina, R/WNES signed a 30-day contract with FEMA to transport sick and injured patients and special needs evacuees from Orleans, Jefferson, and St. Bernard Parishes to local hospitals and to provide emergency medical services in Louisiana from September 3, 2005, through October 2, 2005. The contract expired on October 2, 2005. However, R/WNES continued to provide services through October 17, 2005, allegedly on assurances from the Applicant that FEMA would extend the contract. FEMA did not extend the contract and the Applicant did not contract with R/WNES for services after October 2, 2005.

FEMA prepared PW 16831 on September 18, 2007, for $115,200 for ambulance transportation and emergency medical services provided from October 3, 2005, through October 17, 2005. FEMA subsequently determined that the work was ineligible because the Applicant did not provide a signed contract with R/WNES or other necessary documentation to prove that the services that R/WNES provided were eligible. Therefore, FEMA did not reimburse those costs.

The Applicant submitted its first appeal on behalf of R/WNES on November 2, 2007. The Applicant stated that R/WNES is a PNP organization and that the services it provided during that 15-day period are eligible Category B work. The Applicant also stated that FEMA reimbursed R/WNES for the same services under a FEMA contract from September 3, 2005, through October 2, 2005. The Applicant submitted copies of R/WNES invoices and personnel records, correspondence between the Applicant and R/WNRS lawyers, and miscellaneous letters, facsimiles, and e-mails. The State of Louisiana’s Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness (GOHSEP) supported the Applicant and recommended that FEMA allow the Applicant additional time to provide eligibility documents and a signed contract. On April 4, 2008, GOHSEP appeals staff advised FEMA that the Applicant would not be supplying additional documentation to support its claim. On April 25, 2008,
the Regional Administrator denied the first appeal because FEMA advised R/WNES on October 5, 2005, that FEMA would not extend the contract.

On July 7, 2008, the IEZZI Law firm sent a letter on behalf of R/WNES to the Applicant, stating that R/WNES was appealing the Regional Administrator’s decision on the first appeal. R/WNES’ letter states that the ambulance services are eligible work under emergency protective measures, and that R/WNES relied on good faith assurances from the Applicant that a contract extension would be forthcoming. The letter does not include any new supporting documentation. On July 15, 2008, the Applicant forwarded R/WNES’s letter to GOHSEP with a request that R/WNES be given the opportunity to present oral testimony to FEMA before FEMA completes its evaluation of the appeal. GOHSEP transmitted the letter to FEMA on September 16, 2008.

44 CFR § 206.223(a)(3) states that, “To be eligible for financial assistance, an item of work must be the legal responsibility of an eligible applicant.” In addition, 44 CFR § 206.206 states, “An eligible applicant, subgrantee, or grantee may appeal any determination previously made related to an application.” R/WNES is a Pennsylvania-based PNP that FEMA contracted with to provide ambulance services from September 3, 2005 to October 2, 2005. Neither FEMA nor the Applicant contracted with R/WNES for ambulance services from October 3, 2005, to October 17, 2005. R/WNES it is not an eligible applicant in disaster FEMA-1603-DR-LA. Therefore, the costs R/WNES incurred from October 3, 2005, and October 17, 2005, are not eligible for FEMA reimbursement. Further, R/WNES does not have any rights under program regulations to appeal a FEMA determination.

Based on the above, I am denying the second appeal.

Please inform the Applicant of my decision. This determination is the final decision on this matter pursuant to 44 CFR §206.206.

Sincerely,

/s/

James A. Walke
Acting Assistant Administrator
Disaster Assistance Directorate

cc: Gary Jones
Acting Regional Administrator
FEMA Region VI

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