It’s been two months since Crozer Health closed, and Delaware County communities and residents are definitely experiencing longer waits, longer transport times, and higher costs for their healthcare, writes Joe Holden for CBS News Philadelphia.
Most communities are facing hundreds of thousands of dollars in upfront costs as they scramble to find ambulance coverage for advanced life support calls.
Delaware County provided ALS coverage to communities for 90 days, but it expires on August 3.
Crozer Health ambulance coverage was free of charge, and community budgets don’t have the funds to suddenly buy a $350,000 ambulance.
Some communities have established regional agreements and continue to collaborate with the county and state to reduce taxpayer costs.
Then there’s the lack of hospitals.
Riddle Hospital has had a 42 percent increase in overall volume since Crozer closed.
Lorraine Lex, a Lower Chichester employee, said her grandson recently had to wait eight hours to go to Riddle’s ER for stitches.
Riddle is “implementing measures aimed at easing wait times not only at Riddle Hospital, which has been facing unprecedented volumes since the closure of Crozer Health, but also at our other hospitals,” according to a hospital statement.
Find out more about the current impact of Crozer Health’s closure on Delaware County communities at CBS News Philadelphia.
