Overview
- City council, which met Tuesday after disclosing a March 24 unanimous rejection of the province’s terms, postponed a final stance to May 12 and will consider rescinding that earlier direction with a two‑thirds vote.
- The city currently pays about $3.5 million a year to support its integrated fire and ambulance model, and officials project extra local costs of $3.7 million in 2027, $4.2 million in 2028, and $4.6 million in 2029 under the proposed approach.
- Mayor Blaine Hyggen says provincial officials told the city no extra funding is coming to maintain the integrated model, creating a gap city leaders warn would fall to local taxpayers.
- Lethbridge‑East MLA Nathan Neudorf counters that the province will pay 100% of the equivalent Emergency Health Services–Alberta cost and says he supports keeping the integrated model in Lethbridge.
- EHS‑Alberta says most ground ambulance contracts expire Sept. 30 and services could go to procurement if a municipality declines its costing, a shift that union leaders say is adding stress for roughly 70 firefighter‑paramedics.