Alberta Health Services is asking the Wheatland and Adjacent Districts Emergency Medical Services Association (WADEMSA) to return over $4 million in surplus funds.
A report by WADEMSA was presented to Strathmore's town council at Wednesday's (Oct. 2) meeting. The report was read out by Councillors Richard Wegener and Denise Peterson, who also serve on WADEMSA's board.
"By law, we are required to provide AHS with our audited financial statements on an annual basis," said Wegener. "What the government wants is this money back. It seems like they're penalizing us for running a good organization."
According to the report, WADEMSA claims that the $4 million surplus is not an accurate representation, with the surplus being closer to $2.1 million.
"AHS thinks that we should be running it break even as a non-profit, so no operating capital," added Wegener. "Since 2013 we have not seen an increase in funding from AHS."
Wegener also claims that their $2.1 million surplus only covers about six months of WADEMSA's operations, which includes Wheatland EMS and fire dispatch.
"If AHS claws that back, there's a very good chance that WADEMSA is gone," claimed Wegener.
Debates about the surplus have been going on since May through a series of letters, with WADEMSA and AHS meeting in September to discuss the surplus. During the meeting, no concrete solutions were reached.
AHS has asked if WADEMSA would be willing to refund the surplus funds back to the organization and is demanding an explanation outlining the rationale for the variance in their surplus claims. AHS is also asking for financial statements from WADEMSA going back to 2009.
"It was a bit of a shock to see a letter where they're trying to claw back $4 million when we don't have $4 million," said Wegener.
The report was accepted as information by council, with WADEMSA continuing to work alongside AHS to solve how much money is owed.
According to AHS, they have a contract management program to ensure that funding levels are appropriate, and that money is used according to their agreement's terms.