Birthplace of Texas Oilfield

Corsicana, an important agribusiness center, is the government seat for Navarro County and home to almost half of its population. The city gained popularity after oil was accidentally discovered blocks away from the business district. Within a few years, Corsicana became the site of Texas’s first commercial oil field and the first oil refinery, leading to a substantial economic impact on the state.

Founded in 1848, Corsicana established its first fire department three decades later after a fire destroyed the County’s Courthouse. Corsicana Hose Company #1, a volunteer fire department, initially relied on 25 volunteers. Now, a full-time agency led by Fire Chief Mike Ryan, Corsicana Fire Rescue has nearly doubled its personnel.

Chief Ryan is a long-time acquaintance of EMERGICON. “I served the Duncanville Fire Department for 27 years and made my way up to Division Chief of EMS. That’s how I met EMERGICON,” he recalls. Chief Ryan heard positive feedback regarding collections growth from the Lancaster Fire Department and decided to observe it. “Duncanville has a tight relationship with Lancaster and DeSoto Fire Departments. After learning about their experience, we chose EMERGICON when it was time to select an EMS billing company.” All four agencies mentioned here remain EMERGICON partners to this day.

To The Rescue

When Ryan assumed the Fire Chief position in 2022, Corsicana Fire Rescue had just discontinued EMS response. A decision resulting from staffing issues. However, the department holds one ambulance on standby to assist when the city’s private provider is overloaded. “We still maintain our provider license and all the contracts as if running a full ambulance service. Not only do we assist our private provider, but we also need to be prepared to take EMS back over if it comes to that.”

With the decrease in call volume, CFR struggled to find a billing partner that met their needs. “The previous billing company started charging us a monthly fee because we were not collecting enough. So, we were losing a lot of money there. But our call volume was so low that nobody would take us differently.” Corsicana Fire Rescue was at a crossroads: accept a monthly fee contract or start in-house billing. Neither option was suitable.

Although Chief Ryan knew he didn’t have a profitable partnership to propose, he remembered his prior reliable experience with EMERGICON. So, he contacted the Account Manager with whom he worked in Duncanville, hoping EMERGICON would ‘come to the rescue.’ “I said, ‘We are in a bad spot. There’s no way we can do this ourselves. It’s not enough of a money-maker for y’all, but we really could use EMERGICON’s help.’ And without hesitation, she said, ‘We will help.’ Since then, everyone has bent backward to support us.”

Back-To-Back Benefits

Chief Ryan’s experience working with EMERGICON in two different agencies has shown him he can lean on this billing partner. “We were struggling to find a company. Then, I made one phone call, and EMERGICON was there for us. So, we feel very dedicated and loyal. If we take EMS back over, EMERGICON will continue to have our business for years.”

From customer service to compliance, CFR also knows they can trust the company’s processes. “There are no concerns or headaches regarding our EMS billing. We entirely trust EMERGICON’s expertise and performance. We know we’ll receive every solid compliant dollar that can be collected for us.”

“Another huge benefit is EMERGICON’s communication practices. Whenever we have a question, we’ll quickly have someone on the phone to give us an answer. Sometimes, the team predicts and contacts us before we even know there is an issue. I feel that we are equally cared for regardless of the agency size or number of calls.”

Photos credit: Corsicana Fire Rescue

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