POUGHKEEPSIE, NY — Dutchess County Executive Sue Serino reports the County’s contracted supplemental ambulance coverage, which began on January 1, 2025, is off to successful start, enhancing emergency medical services (EMS) across the county. Through a contract with the County, Empress Ambulance is providing the supplemental service under the direction of Dutchess County 911 Communications Center. The supplemental ambulance coverage is part of the historic $2 million EMS investment included in the County’s 2025 Budget, approved in a bipartisan vote by the Dutchess County Legislature late last year.
Dutchess County Executive Sue Serino said, “By contracting for countywide ambulance units, we are addressing gaps in EMS coverage, improving response times, and ensuring neighbors have access to timely, high-quality emergency care. Whether it’s a medical emergency in a rural area or a large-scale event requiring immediate major response capabilities, these resources will assist in ensuring that help will arrive when it’s needed most. This initiative is a direct result of listening to our communities and taking action to meet their needs.”
Following a Request for Proposals process, the County has contracted with Empress Ambulance Service to serve as the primary provider with 24/7 service that includes two Basic Life Support (BLS) ambulances and one Advanced Life Support (ALS) fly car. These resources are strategically stationed in regions where response times have historically been longer and are repositioned in real-time to improve coverage when primary service providers are at response capacity.
In the first week of operation, the 911 Communications Center has dispatched the contracted Empress ambulances and paramedic fly car 58 times with responses to the towns of East Fishkill, Pawling, Red Hook, Pine Plains, Clinton, Hyde Park, Pleasant Valley, Fishkill, Wappinger, Poughkeepsie, and the villages of Fishkill and Wappingers Falls. Calls for service have ranged from patients experiencing medical emergencies, such as chest pain and difficulty breathing, to evaluating victims of a motor vehicle accident on the Taconic State Parkway.
The new supplemental ambulance coverage follows several months of regional meetings in 2024 with municipal leaders, during which County Executive Serino and other County officials discussed the historical and current challenges facing EMS and reviewed data for their specific regions critical to informing strategic solutions.
DER officials also met with more than 50 representatives from fire departments/rescue squads across the county in December to review the roll-out of the supplemental coverage, outlining how the ambulances, which are staffed by Empress personnel, are under the exclusive control of the Dutchess County 911 Communications Center, and assigned in real-time to address coverage gaps and EMS call surges. The Empress ambulances contracted by the County will be branded as Dutchess County in the coming weeks, clearly identifying them as the contracted supplemental service.
These ambulances do not replace primary coverage; they are supplemental support to ensure care gets to patients when primary coverage or mutual aid is unable to get to the patient in a timely manner.
The operational plan and protocols for dispatching the supplemental coverage was also reviewed, including:
While Dutchess County Department of Emergency Response (DER) officials noted it will take time to integrate the new service into the existing response systems, both County officials and fire/rescue squad representatives are optimistic about this important step to address EMS issues. DER officials are reviewing coverage data and any emerging issues on a weekly basis and are encouraging fire and rescue agencies to share feedback about any necessary adjustments or improvements that may be needed.
Dutchess County EMS Council President Chrissy Eighmy said, “This new supplemental service is a significant move forward by the County in helping to address the various challenges for EMS. We appreciate the ongoing dialogue as the County’s supplemental service comes online and we look forward working with DC Emergency Response to help ensure the new service is successful in alleviating some of the stress on the EMS system and getting patients the care they need.”
The County is also in contract discussions with Ambulnz by DocGo to serve as the secondary provider, providing ambulance services during peak demand times, as well as on-call ambulance provider for Dutchess County Government-hosted events to ensure safety and timely response for attendees.
The supplemental ambulance coverage is a priority in Serino’s larger EMS initiative, announced in 2024, which also focuses on workforce recruitment and retention, and increasing public education. Since taking office, Serino has made enhancing emergency medical services a top priority, and has met with mayors and supervisors or other representatives from every municipality in Dutchess County to discuss the historical and current challenges facing EMS.
Dutchess County recently awarded 10 fire districts grants of up to $20,000 to purchase life-saving equipment for their fly-cars, in exchange for unified EMS recruitment messaging to be decaled on these highly visible vehicles.
“Our significant investment in EMS reflects Dutchess County’s commitment to enhancing community safety,” continued Serino. “By investing in critical resources and fostering partnerships with reliable providers, we’re setting a new standard for emergency response services in Dutchess County and the Hudson Valley. This is about more than improving response times; it’s about ensuring that every resident, in every corner of our County, feels confident that help is just a call away when they need it most.”
