Americare EMS Ltd. I am ashamed to have worked here, employee fraud to medicare fraud, to lack of patient care. Lufkin Texas
I have worked in EMS for twenty years now and have worked for many different company's, and all have been professional and caring, til now. We moved here due to my wife's Nursing job, so I went to work for Americare. I was shocked on how the company was run. Americare took over for Goldstar Ambulance who the Feds came in and closed them for Medicare fraud, but most of the employee's and management of Goldstar, are now employee's of Americare. So not much has changed from what I'm able to read about when Goldstar was in business.
When I started, they did not drug test me. So I asked other employee's and they stated that they to have never been drug tested. This started me feeling very nervous, after all, we are driving an ambulance. Now most of the employee's are caring, and take care of the patients. Many don't. The attitude among most is "we are the only ambulance, the patients don't have a choice".
When it came to my patient charting, every report comes back to me with a note stating I need to change why the patient needed an ambulance. And with notes on what I should write. And with having a meeting with the management, they would proceed to coach me on what to write and in a circle talk way tell me what to write. All this is a violation of Medicare rules and regulations. This is part of what got Goldstar shutdown.
Enough is enough! The finial straw was me getting hurt on the job. I was hired as a full time employee. Most employee's don't pay attention to what they are doing, and knowing this, I still got hurt. When I received my first paycheck while off, I noticed is was less that half of what I was told it would be. When I questioned management about this, I was told I was hired as part time. So here goes the he said she said, and this will be a losing battle.
Texas being a right to work state, employee's do not have very many ways to combat this type of employer ethic's. The Medicare fraud can and will be reported to Medicare, but as for everything else, the only thing I can do is to tell and post this information about this company to every person and every website I can find. After all, we are talking about peoples lives.
Anonymous
Nacogdoches, Texas
U.S.A.
3 Updates & Rebuttals
Anonymous
Nacogdoches,Texas,
U.S.A.
Nice script for the newpapers, but this site is for the truth.
#4Author of original report
Mon, February 15, 2010
I have worked in ems for several years. Medicare and Medicaid have given guide lines that are given to each employee and several meeting are held on what medicare-medicade requires this only benefits the patient this information can be found on department dshs webite. This information helps you the emt and the patient. THIS IS NOT BY ANY MEANS COACHED WRITING. Americare Ems is ran with professionalism and caring for the employees, I have found in my time there that they have treated me with fairness and a respect that i didnt always find with other companies. Americare is not a spin-off of goldstar. They offer care and compation to patients and famlies. Yes they are the only private ambulance company in Lufkin. At request of the fire chief of the Lufkin Fire Department. It is obvioulsy working the relationship between both organizations is a good one. AMERICARE EMS IS A GREAT PLACE TO WORK!!!!!!!!!
This website is for truthful information and to gain knowledge about company's and products and services. I re-posted this to show how this is a script and not the truth. So here we go. Medicare and Medicaid do have guidelines, specific guidelines on their CMS website. Any level EMT should, and to keep the patch that you have earned, read up on these guidelines. Just as you do CE's to keep your patch, you should stay current on changes and updates. There is even a link for you to set up so that CMS emails you once a month these changes. And the reference to "several meetings", well those take place when your report is returned multiple times. And no matter how you want to word it, it is coached writing. They are real quick to say, we "by no means coach writing", but just like a used car sales person, it is a play on words. Moving on to "ran with professionalism caring for the employee's" statement. When you see dirty trucks with dents and scratches, and employee's with shirts untucked, how is that professional? "Treating employee's with respect and fairness". Then why does this company pay below the Texas EMS average? Why no medical, dental, vision and 401k programs? Taking care of employee's? I don't think so. "Americare is not a spin off of Goldstar" Well that is a half true statement. And to easy to pick apart. That one is just common sense. The management and EMT's had no other ambulance company to work for when the Feds closed Goldstar. So where do you think these managers and EMTs went to work for? Yup, Americare! And now to my favorite statement. There is a Lufkin city ordinance that states that only ONE private ambulance company can operate in Lufkin. So not saying anything negative about the firemen of Lufkin, but the Fire Chief is the one who supports this city ordinance. So what does that say about the Chief? I'll let you think about that one. So, the last statement, "Americare is a great place to work". It's obvious that it was written by management. One who gets benefits, one who gets paid appropriately, and not that much experience within the Texas EMS community. Meanwhile, all the politics and he said she said continues, and the residents of Lufkin, and Angelina County suffer. Knowledge is power. And to this type of politics and company ethic's ignorance is bliss. My first posting was just the seed, and I hope and pray that the politics and this company go away. There is much more I can say, but for now I hold that information for anyone else that tries to defend this company. The "good old boy" way of doing business here in the "Pine Hole" needs to go away. Its stopping company's like Acadian EMS from coming here. Unfortunately its going to take someone with money, or someone to die and lawsuits to be filed before change is affected. And that is by far the saddest of all. Whether or not you are a EMT at any level or just came across this posting, please pass this site along. Change will only come if lots and lots of people are educated on the way EMS is run here in the "Pine Hole". Thank you!
Ryan watson
United States of AmericaI work here .It is a scam!!
#4UPDATE Employee
Sun, February 14, 2010
Americare Ems is Goldstar Ems. Same owners, same operation managers, same fraud.
anonymous
hntington,Texas,
USA
read the literature handed to you PLEASE!!!!
#4
Wed, September 09, 2009
I have worked in ems for several years. Medicare and Medicaid have given guide lines that are given to each employee and several meeting are held on what medicare-medicade requires this only benefits the patient this information can be found on department dshs webite. This information helps you the emt and the patient. THIS IS NOT BY ANY MEANS COACHED WRITING. Americare Ems is ran with professionalism and caring for the employees, I have found in my time there that they have treated me with fairness and a respect that i didnt always find with other companies. Americare is not a spin-off of goldstar. They offer care and compation to patients and famlies. Yes they are the only private ambulance company in Lufkin. At request of the fire chief of the Lufkin Fire Department. It is obvioulsy working the relationship between both organizations is a good one. AMERICARE EMS IS A GREAT PLACE TO WORK!!!!!!!!!