[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough
of Buena as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
[Adopted 3-26-2007 by Ord. No. 546]
The following fees are hereby established to be collected by
the Borough Clerk for marriages and civil union ceremonies performed
by the Mayor as follows:
[Adopted 9-13-2010 by Ord. No. 571]
The Borough of Buena provides emergency medical services through
the Police Department, Division of Emergency Medical Services, to
citizens and visitors of the Borough of Buena on a twenty-four-hour
basis throughout the year to the extent that such resources are available.
All persons needing EMS services within the Borough of Buena
shall be serviced to the extent that such services are available without
discrimination on any basis, and without respect to residency, ability
to pay, or any other factor. No person located within the Borough
of Buena at the time emergency medical services are needed shall be
denied or delayed available service when such services are available.
The Borough of Buena, through the Division of Emergency Medical
Services and a third-party billing agent (retained by the Borough
of Buena for purposes of seeking payment for the provision of emergency
services), shall maintain accurate records of all of requests for
service, service calls, and services approved by the Division of EMS.
Said records shall include pertinent information about the general
nature of the call and shall identify the complete name, mailing address,
place of domicile, location and telephone numbers of all persons requesting
and receiving the EMS services, as well as all pertinent and available
insurance information.
The Borough of Buena shall contract with a third-party billing
agent for the collection of payment for services rendered by the Division
of EMS. Said bill shall be issued to the insurance company for the
person served, if any, or directly to the person served if insurance
coverage is not available. Fees to be charged for the EMS services
shall be as follows:
Persons receiving a bill for the EMS services shall: make payment
to the Borough of Buena third-party billing agent within 30 days;
or provide proof that they have submitted a claim to their insurance
carrier for payment within 30 days of receipt of request of a bill.
These provisions shall be subject to the following:
A.
Persons receiving the EMS service who have health insurance to cover
ambulance and emergency medical services are expected to cooperate
with the Borough of Buena's third-party billing agent to secure full
payment for services rendered.
B.
In the event the health insurance company of a taxpayer or domiciled
resident does not pay the bill in full, the Borough of Buena will
accept such partial payment to the extent on the insured's policy
limits, including deductible and co-insurance requirements, as payment
in full.
C.
In the event a taxpayer or domiciled resident of the Borough of Buena
does not have health insurance, payment shall not be required.
D.
Due to the time requirements for the preparation and processing of
insurance claims, interest shall not be charged on Borough of Buena's
billings.
E.
After providing emergency medical services, the Borough of Buena shall transmit all pertinent billing information to the Borough of Buena's third-party billing agent for collection as set forth in Subsection F below. The third-party billing agent shall be responsible for receipt of payment and proper recordkeeping of its collections as provided in its contract with the Borough of Buena. Payments received by third-party billing agent shall, thereafter, be transmitted electronically to a designated account of the Borough of Buena to be administered by the Borough of Buena Chief Financial Officer (CFO). In addition, the third-party billing agent shall simultaneously transmit a transport report to the Coordinator of EMS for its review and approval and transport copy of the Borough CFO. The Coordinator of EMS shall prepare a reconciliation report and shall monitor the operations of the third-party billing agent, including billing activities and receipt of funds.
F.
The third-party billing agent shall be responsible for the initial
billing and two follow-up billings. Costs associated with the third-party
reimbursement requests shall be based solely on a percent of reimbursement
collections as provided in its contract with the Borough of Buena.
After three attempts to collect said claim, the third-party billing
agency shall notify the Borough of Buena and relinquish rights to
that billing, unless otherwise directed by the Borough Manager. The
Borough of Buena shall turn said delinquent accounts over to a collection
agency that will be compensated on a percent of cash collections of
the delinquent accounts. The Borough of Buena reserves the right to
determine that a bill is uncollectible and should be written off.
For the purposes of emergency medical service charges, the following
definitions shall apply:
- A. Any individual who is the spouse or an unemancipated child (natural, adopted or stepchild) of a taxpayer or domiciled resident as defined in this section;
- B. Any unemancipated child for whom the taxpayer or year-round resident has been appointed legal guardian;
- C. Any individual who resides in a permanent domicile of the taxpayer of domiciled resident and is claimed as a dependent for federal income tax purposes; or
- D. Any individual who resides in the permanent domicile of the taxpayer or domiciled resident, and who is deemed to be a dependent under the health insurance policy of the taxpayer or domiciled resident.
- DOMICILED RESIDENT
- Any individual whose legal domicile is within the Borough of Buena. Verification of domicile shall be based on voter registration, a State of New Jersey Driver's license, proof of filing a State of New Jersey income tax return from a Borough of Buena address or other proofs accepted under federal guidelines.
- TAXPAYER
- Any individual listed on the deed of ownership of any property located within the municipal boundaries of the Borough of Buena and their dependents as defined in this section. In the case of corporation, partnership, only those individuals retaining a 25% or greater ownership shall be considered a taxpayer. For the purpose of determining a 25% or greater ownership, adult married or civil union partners may combine their ownership. "Dependent" as defined in this section shall be considered a taxpayer.