'We are at a critical point': NJ EMS Task Force desperate for money to save lives

In the spring, as wildfires rampaged through Manchester and other areas of the Pine Barrens, the New Jersey EMS Task Force was on hand to treat exhausted firefighters and conduct evacuations.

In July 2022, when an air conditioning outage forced a partial evacuation of Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank, the New Jersey EMS Task Force responded with two medical ambulance buses to support evacuating patients and six portable air conditioning systems.

In 2021, when the New Jersey Department of Health needed COVID-19 vaccines transported from locations with surpluses to locations in need, it turned to the New Jersey EMS Task Force, which wound up transferring more than 800,000 doses.

Now the Neptune-based nonprofit, a statewide coalition of 185 first responders trained in emergency medical services, is asking for help. Chairman Michael Bascom said it needs $23 million in funding from the federal government to replace aging ambulance buses, tow trucks for its multipurpose trailers and protective equipment for its personnel.

'It will jeopardize our ability'

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“We are at a critical point,” chairman Michael Bascom, who is also Neptune’s chief financial officer and emergency management coordinator, said via phone Wednesday. “We will lose capabilities in some areas, and long-term, it will jeopardize our ability to operate.”

The task force was formed in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and has been funded by a combination of donations, grants and federal assistance channeled through the states in fits and starts for disaster relief.

Of its 17 ambulance buses located throughout the state, Bascom said, 13 of them need to be replaced — including eight that are at the end of their lifespan (around 15 years). The task force also has trailers in all 21 counties, trailers that get used for staging, supplies, shelter or even hospital surges.

“We don’t have vehicles to tow them anymore,” Bascom said. “Some of our tow vehicles are 16, 17 years old.”

The task force is chartered for 250 members, “but we only have 185 because we do not have enough funding to provide an additional 70 members with PPE (respirators, helmets, etc.). So right now we’re at a reduced level of staffing, and we have at least 50 pending applications (to join).”

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'We don't have a strong lobby'

Bascom is seeking assistance through the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan passed by Congress in 2021. Those funds are disbursed through the state governments, and Bascom said pulling the proper levers for that is not the task force’s strong suit.

“We’ve had great state support, without question, but we don’t have a strong lobby,” he said. “The political process is not our focus, and unfortunately that’s something that’s needed when you’re seeking government funds.”

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According its most recent annual report, in 2022 the task force logged 397 responses tallying 12,000 hours of service and received $2 million through grants and donations, which funded operations and upgrades to the ambulance buses.

Bascom projects an enlarged role for the task force in the coming years as increasing wildfires and weather-related disasters overwhelm local first responders.

“You look at what’s happening in Maui and what’s happening throughout this country with wildfires,” he said. “Preparing to deal with that is becoming more and more of a national focus.”

Jerry Carino is community columnist for the Asbury Park Press, focusing on the Jersey Shore’s interesting people, inspiring stories and pressing issues. Contact him at jcarino@gannettnj.com.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: NJ EMS Task Force needs $23M if it's to keep saving lives