Pafford EMS has found a new home in Leflore County.
In a special called meeting by the Leflore County Board of Supervisors on Friday afternoon, Pafford beat out MedStat, the current and longtime provider, in gaining the board’s favor for an ambulance contract. The vote was 3-2.
Board President Robert Collins of District 5, Vice President Reginald Moore of District 2 and District 4’s Eric Mitchell voted for Pafford.
District 1 Supervisor Sam Abraham and District 3 Supervisor Anjuan Brown voted for MedStat. Both expressed their loyalty to MedStat, saying they haven’t had a complaint about them in three or four years.
They also both said that the county would benefit from both companies, and neither is any better than the other.
“It’s not me; it’s not y’all; it’s the citizens,” Abraham said before casting his vote.
“If I ask people to do something and they do it, just in my heart, just out of courtesy, I feel like that’s who we support,” Brown said of MedStat.
Pafford
MedStat has been with the county since 1997, and its contract will end March 31. Greg Pafford, CEO of Pafford EMS, said that his company is ready to “hit the ground” April 1.
Pafford will enter into a two-year contract with Leflore County with the option of a two-year renewal in 2022. The county is free to terminate its agreement with Pafford at any time upon a 90-day written notice.
“We don’t want anything slacking in Leflore County,” Brown said to Pafford.
“If something is not right,” Pafford said, “I expect y’all to pick the phone up ... and if there’s a problem, we’re going to look into it and we’re going to fix it.”
Pafford also said that all local MedStat employees will be offered employment first, and then they will hire other paramedics as needed. They also said that they will do their best to match pay rates to what MedStat employees are currently making, and all they have to do is bring their pay stubs by for a one-on-one meeting.
Pafford will be supplying four new ambulances to serve the county, as well as a spare in case demand gets too high.
The county will provide a subsidy of $149,000 per year during the two-year contract. The county will make equal monthly payments, and this will fund the new ambulances.
Pafford will also have a minimum of two ambulance stations in the county — one in Greenwood and one in Itta Bena. It also plans to give back to the community by supporting local businesses for maintenance parts and other needs.
Eldridge
“It has been an honor and privilege to work for you guys,” Dave Eldridge, director of operations for MedStat, said to the board. “We’re still your neighbors, and we’ll do what we can to help you.”
Eldridge said that MedStat will continue to serve Leflore County until the last minute of its contract, and then they’ll “go from there.”
“We’ll still be around; we just won’t be in Greenwood,” he said.
“We look forward to doing a good job,” Pafford said.
•Contact Kerrigan Herret at 581-7233 or kherret@gwcommonwealth.com.
