By Gary Warth
The San Diego Union-Tribune
EL CAJON, Calif. — Care facilities in El Cajon that call 911 to get assistance lifting a client who has fallen, but is not injured, will face a $565 fee under a new rule the City Council is pursuing.
The fee will not affect households that call if someone has fallen, but only care facilities that call if a patient or resident has fallen and does not require medical attention.
A staff report on the proposed fee before the City Council on Tuesday stated there were 382 lift-assist calls in 2024, and 12%, or about 46, were from care facilities.
City Manager Graham Mitchell said only a few care facilities were responsible for the calls.
While the number of calls for lift-assists at care facilities is not large, it does divert fire department officials away from other duties, and each call takes about 18 minutes, according to a staff report.
The new fee may lead to another fee addressing what’s seen as a greater issue involving 911 calls from care facilities.
The City Council first discussed fees for 911 calls last September following a city staff report that found 44% of calls from the city’s 20 licensed care facilities were for non-emergency incidents.
The 2,753 calls made from the facilities represented more than 15% of all fire department calls in a year, and the fire department responded to an average of 7.5 calls a day to the facilities.
At the time, the council discussed implementing a $487 fee for non-emergency calls after a facility exceeded what was considered a reasonable amount.
El Cajon could be the first city in the state or even the nation to impose a fee for non-emergency calls from care facilities, but Mitchell said the city’s proposed fee specifically for lift-assists had been tested and would follow similar fees in the California city of Rocklin and in Decatur, Ill. and Tacoma, Wash.
“This is the low hanging, baby step,” Mitchell said.
In an email following Tuesday’s meeting, Mitchell said the city is in the early stages of exploring a fee for excessive 911 calls.
“I will be meeting with the operators over the next few months to explore this concept or other ideas that they may have to reduce the burden on the 911 system,” he wrote.
Councilmember Phil Ortiz said a fee on lift-assists was a good first step toward addressing what some see as an abuse of the 911 system.
“I don’t think that the citizens of El Cajon should be subsidizing and paying to help these handful of skilled nursing facilities or congregate care facilities operate their business,” he said. “I think they need to staff it and not take advantage of the taxpayer.”
Senior Management Analyst Barbara Watkins presented the report on the proposed fee to the council on Tuesday and said the charge would only be applied for repeated non-emergency calls for lift-assists.
“Staff has and will continue to be proactive with communication and education for these affected facilities, and all of this with a goal for a smooth and collaborative rollout,” she said. “This proposal is about responsible resource management and ensuring our fire department remains focused on life-threatening emergencies and encourages congregate care providers to improve their internal processes.”
Following the unanimous vote by the council Tuesday, city staff will return with a draft ordinance April 22 and again for a second reading May 13. If approved, the fee will go into effect 30 days later on June 12.
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