Sierra Medical Services Alliance — SEMSA — provided an annual report to the Lassen County Emergency Medical Care Committee at its Feb. 25 meeting at 1616 Chestnut St. in Susanville.
According to the report, SEMSA responded to 3,354 calls in 2025 — 2,669 911 responses, 685 non-emergency responses, 314 no TX responses. 2,356 911 transports for a total of 3,040 transports in 2025.
Matt Hillar, SEMSA operations manager, publicly announced that due to SEMSA recently and unexpectedly losing an RFP to provide ambulance services in Merced — a metropolitan area that boosted the company’s bottom line — it is forced to abandon its effort to provide services in Lassen County. The company plans to continue its operation in Reno, Nevada.
Hillar said the company would be unable to continue its contract with the city because financially it would be too risky to continue moving forward with negotiations for a five-year contract to provide services in Lassen County.
Hillar said SEMSA had obtained a three-month extension on its contract (good until May), and it planned to continue to provide services in Lassen County to ensure there was no lapse in services in the county.
Donna Stone, Chief Operating Officer of NorCal EMS, the agency that manages emergency services in Northern California (Trinity, Modoc, Lassen. Plumas and Sierra counties), said her agency has been working with SEMSA and expected an agreement was close. Then NorCal EMS found SEMSA was interested in selling the organization and that generated new wrinkles.
Despite meetings in January and February SEMSA failed to meet a Feb. 6 deadline and then, with just three weeks remaining in its contract, declared it had decided not to pursue a new, five-year contract, forcing NorCal to declare an emergency situation.
The committee discussed the pros and cons of offering companies an Exclusive Operating Area contract or one that would allow several companies to operate on a rotation of calls. The committee approved a motion seeking an EOA contract.
According to the NorCal EMS website, the agency expects letters of intent for RFP No. 02262026 by 1 p.m. April 17.
At the meeting Stone said two companies have expressed an interest in providing the service in Lassen County.
Representatives from both companies attended the meeting, but as the conversation began to consider operating advantages of one company over the other, Lassen County Sheriff John McGarva, a member of the committee, suggested those conversations may be inappropriate at this time and should be considered at part of the EMS process.
The committee unanimously approved the creation of and EOA RFP adhoc committee, unanimously approved the NorCal Penalty Trust Account and set its next meeting for a date to be determined in April.
Source: Lassen News
