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Saturday, August 9, 2014
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How much for an ambulance ride? After four years, Princeton considers rate increase By Donna Barker dbarker@bcrnews.com
PRINCETON — The Princeton Fire Protection District is looking at adjustments to its ambulance billing rates.
At this week’s meeting, Princeton City Manager Jeff Clawson presented the proposed changes as a first reading for consideration by the Princeton City Council. The proposed increases would result in a charge of $375 for Basic Life Support
(BLS) non-emergency call and $450 for a BLS emergency call for residents of the Princeton Fire Protection District and the communities with contracts for the Princeton service. For the Intermediate Life Support (ILS) non-emergency call for a resident, the new fee would be $425 with a charge of $500 for ILS emergency call.
Charges for non-residents would remain at $450 for BLS non-emergency; be increased to $550 for BLS emergency; remain at $525 for ILS non-emergency; and increase to $625 for ILS emergency. The proposed ambulance billing increases also include three new charges for nonresidents. A non--transport refusal fee will be $150; a
vehicle charge per hour for a motor vehicle accident will be $125; and a manpower charge will be $35 per hour. Again, these new charges are for non-residents. On Tuesday, Princeton Fire Chief Chuck Woolley said the proposed rate increases were suggested by looking at the industry’s standard in the area and the Interstate 80 corridor which
By Donna Barker dbarker@bcrnews.com
Hours Page 4 Year 168 No. 95 One Section - 16 Pages
By Christi Warren Shaw Media Service
BCR photo/Goldie Currie
Head over heels about dragons? The Richard A. Mautino Memorial Library hosted Jim Nesci, an experienced expert in the reptile industry, on Wednesday evening in Kirby Park. Nesci oohed and ahhed the crowd with his amazing collection of cold-blooded creatures. Pictured is Macy Zeglis, 9, of Spring Valley as she reacts to a komodo dragon on her head. Nesci thrilled the audience with many unknown facts about the misunderstood group of creatures and told humorous stories related to his adventures with his reptiles.
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Quadruple murder sentence coming Monday for Sheley
Cherry, Sheffield to reduce post office hours CHERRY/SHEFFIELD — The U.S. Postal Service has completed its meetings in seven Bureau County communities and presented plans to reduce retail window service hours in six of those post offices. At last week’s community meeting in Cherry, U.S. Postal Service representative Donna Sherwood said the Cherry Post Office customers will see a reduction of weekday open window hours from seven hours to four hours, Monday through Friday. The likely retail hours for the Cherry Post Office would be from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. The total Saturday window service hours would not be reduced and would likely be 8:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. Sherwood said 228 surveys were mailed to Cherry customers with 98 surveys returned. Of those, 78 percent preferred a realignment of hours, with 6 percent choosing a delivery option and 1 percent choosing a nearby post office option. Fifteen percent of the responding surveys indicated no selection. At last week’s meeting in Sheffield, Sherwood said Sheffield residents will see minimal change in their post office retail open window hours with a reduction from the current six and one-half hours to six hours of open window service.
he received by the department’s billing company. Not all rates were increased. The increases calculated to an average of just under 15 percent which averages out to 3.75 percent for each of the last four years, dating back to 2010 when the last rates were reviewed, Woolley said.
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MORRISON — Monday at 11 a.m. in Whiteside County Court, threetime convicted murderer Nicholas Sheley will face what is likely to be his final sentencing in the state of Illinois. On May 29, a Rock Island County jury found him guilty of first-degree murder for killing Brock Branson, 29; his girlfriend, Kilynna Blake, 20; her son, Dayan, 2; and Kenneth Ulve, 25. All four were beaten to death with a hammer in their Rock Falls apartment in June 2008. After Sheley is sentenced in Whiteside County, Forrest Wegge, the prosecuting attorney in Jefferson County, Mo., will begin the lengthy process of extraditing him. Sheley could face the death penalty if convicted of murdering an Arkansas couple whose bodies were found behind a dumpster in Festus, Mo., after they had been beaten to death. Wegge said he has been following Sheley’s cases closely and met with some of the Illinois prosecuting attorneys last week about the matter. He declined to say whether he will seek capital punishment, a decision he must make before the trial begins.
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