An ambulance passes the food and supply distribution site at Lahaina Gateway Center in August while making its way through traffic on Honoapiilani Highway on the first day the road was reopened to the general public. The Maui News / MATTHEW THAYER photo

The state Department of Health canceled two hefty contracts awarded to Falck Northwest Corp. to run ground ambulance services in Maui and Kauai counties following pushback from the current contractor and paramedics’ unions.

American Medical Response, the current ambulance service provider, had filed a protest after the department selected Falck in August for a nearly $59 million contract in Maui County and a $32 million contract on Kauai, both of which were supposed to start Dec. 28 and run through June 30, 2027.

The concerns centered on the Emergency Medical Services & Injury Prevention System Branch’s request for contract proposals, which the paramedics’ unions said did not set a minimum level of advanced life support unit coverage. Maui County’s system is designeda as a 100 percent advanced life support system, which proved crucial when paramedics had to treat dozen of burn patients and transport some to the hospital via the perilous route to Kahakuloa, the Maui County Paramedics Association and Kauai Paramedics Association said in a letter on Sept. 2.

The unions worried that the new contracts would not guarantee that advanced life support units would respond to emergencies.

State Health Director Dr. Kenneth Fink, who upheld AMR’s protest and ordered the process to start over, said that while the branch may have intended to maintain the current staffing level for advanced life support ambulances, that requirement was not clearly included in the request for proposals. He said that requests for information should have been issued, but they were improperly waived.

“Based upon my review of how the RFPs were written regarding ambulance staffing, RFIs should have been completed,” Fink said in a news release announcing his decision Monday. “However, I’d like to reassure the residents of Kaua’i and Maui Counties that the next RFPs will be clear that the current ambulance staffing level will be maintained. I am accountable for the department, and I apologize for the uncertainty created by the previous RFPs.”

The department said that a new procurement process will start in the coming weeks. Current contracts will be extended in the meantime.

“While we are disappointed by today’s decision, Falck stands ready to deliver best-in-class ambulances services to Kaua’i and Maui County,” Falck USA Chief Commercial Officer Troy Hagen said in a statement on Monday afternoon. “To be clear, our commitment was to continue the same or better level of emergency medical services. We look forward to reviewing the Department of Health’s new request for proposal when it is issued.”

Doug Chin, an attorney for Falck, had told the Maui County Council last month that regardless of how the DOH had worded its request for proposals, the global health care and emergency services company “is committed to maintaining current staffing levels” for all advanced life support ambulances.

The council had introduced a resolution urging the Health Department to continue its contract with AMR and echoing issues raised by the paramedics’ associations.

On Monday afternoon, an AMR official applauded the Health Department’s decision.

“We believe the Department of Health made the right decision and appreciate the time that they took for the review,” AMR General Manager Speedy Bailey said in a statement. “We are confident that we are the best qualified provider of ambulance services for the residents and visitors of Maui and Kaua’i. As part of a trusted and integrated system of quality health services for the entire State of Hawai’i with a proven track record, we welcome the contracting process. This decision ensures the communities of Maui and Kaua’i uninterrupted access to ambulance services.”

The City and County of Honolulu and Hawaii County operate emergency medical ambulance services within their respective counties, according to the Health Department. DOH contracts for ground ambulance services for counties that do not operate or contract for this service.

* Managing Editor Colleen Uechi can be reached at cuechi@mauinews.com.