Independent analysis. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or produced by the City of St. Louis, STLFD, IAFF Local 73, the Division of EMS, or any city agency or labor organization. All figures derived from publicly available city budget documents, annual reports, and cited published sources.

St. Louis EMS · Public Accountability Archive · 2013 – 2026

The record
is not
ambiguous.

City paramedics and EMTs handle 80,000+ calls per year — more than fire suppression and police service calls combined — while earning up to $20,000 less than entry-level officers in both departments. An independent consultant documented the problem in 2014. Reporters documented it in 2022 and 2023. The union said someone would eventually be harmed — in 2013. The fleet is still 12. The pay structure hasn't moved in proportion. This archive is the documented record.

80,633

EMS dispatches citywide — FY24

220.9/day · 28.2% diverted to private

12

Authorized ambulances — unchanged since ICMA study

ICMA minimum recommendation: 18. Operational target: 24.

96

Field personnel actually running calls

4 platoons × 12 units × 2 crew. The "159 employees" budget figure includes supervisors, chiefs, admin, QA/QI, inventory, and medical direction.

$4.9M

EMS revenue lost annually to private diversion

Direct billing + GEMT exposure. Conservative planning estimate.

10+

Years of documented budget proposals — all denied

Chief Jenkerson requested additional ambulances every year of his tenure.

On the "159 employees" figure: The FY26/FY27 budget headcount of 159–160 EMS employees is real — but it includes the full division, not just field crews. The 96 personnel actually staffing ambulances are: 4 platoons × 12 authorized units × 2 crew (EMT + Paramedic). The remaining positions are supervisory, administrative, and command: 8 field supervisors, 2 Deputy EMS Chiefs, 1 EMS Division Chief, QA/QI officer, EMS inventory supervisor, office personnel, and medical direction. When the city says "159 employees handle 56,570 responses," the per-employee figure understates the true per-field-crew burden by a significant margin. True field responses per ambulance crew at 12 units / full staffing: ~12.9 calls/unit/day · At typical 10-unit staffing: ~15.5 · Short-staffed at 7 units: 22.7+

Document archive — 5 reports · 11 pages total

9 SLIDES REPORT 1 OF 5 · TOPIC 1–4

Same emergency.
Different paycheck.

The full interactive report. Pay disparity, workload data, system capacity analysis, and the path to fixing it — all in one navigable presentation.

  • Topic 1: Entry-level pay vs. police, fire, and every regional competitor
  • Topic 2: 80k+ calls, 12 trucks, 94% shift capacity consumed by transports alone
  • Topic 3: ICMA findings, UHU math, turnover cycle, institutional knowledge loss
  • Topic 4: The funding path — four layers, three scenarios, one ordinance
Open Report →
4 PAGES REPORT 2 OF 5 · DEEP DATA

Running
on empty.

The extended data file. Shift-by-shift workload math, EMS-vs-fire capability comparison, revenue flow analysis, and the BB24 ordinance breakdown.

  • Workload: 82,585 dispatches · 43,500 billable transports · 56,570 city responses
  • Capability gap: What an engine crew can — and cannot — do without a paramedic on scene
  • Revenue: $20.09M generated · $15.19M appropriated · GEMT flows to fire budget
  • BB24: First ordinance that would allow GEMT to supplement EMS salaries — not yet passed
Open Report →
PAGE 5 OF 6 REPORT 3 OF 5 · DOCUMENTED RECORD

They were
told. They did
nothing.

The timeline. Every documented warning, study, investigation, and public statement — from 2013 through 2024. Part 1 of 2.

  • 2013: I-Team investigation · 27 NUA events in 6 months · Chief says "public is safe"
  • 2014: ICMA study: add 6 ambulances minimum · nothing implemented
  • 2020–21: Two-thirds of paramedic positions unfilled · hours-long waits documented
  • 2022: Post-Dispatch: man dies waiting · 8 years after ICMA study · still 12 trucks
  • 2023: Fox 2: 200+ NUA events in a single month
Open Report →
PAGE 6 OF 6 REPORT 4 OF 5 · IN THEIR OWN WORDS

They did
nothing.

The quotes. Fire chief, union VP, field paramedics — all said the same thing, in public, for over a decade. The record is not ambiguous. Part 2 of 2.

  • Chief Jenkerson, 2022: "I have asked for more ambulances every year. We haven't been able to convince anybody."
  • Local 73 VP Rieger, 2013: "It would not surprise me if people had permanent damage due to not getting help immediately."
  • Pattern: 12 ambulances authorized — in 2013, in 2014, in 2022, in 2024. Unchanged.
  • The cost: $4.9M in annual revenue lost — more than the fix would have cost in 2014.
Open Report →
What this archive documents: The City of St. Louis has known since at least 2013 that its EMS system was under-resourced. An independent consultant confirmed it in 2014 and recommended a minimum of 18 ambulances. The city authorized 12 then. It authorizes 12 now. In the intervening decade, a man died waiting for an ambulance, reporters documented hundreds of no-unit-available events in a single month, and more than two-thirds of paramedic positions went unfilled. The union said someone would be harmed — in 2013. The fire chief asked for more units every year of his tenure. The answer was always no. Meanwhile, the same CBA that gave fire a 7% raise gave EMS 3%. The same negotiation that added $10,000 to fire entry pay added $1,000 — approximately $100 per paycheck — to EMS. Every single time. The documents in this archive are publicly sourced. The math is verifiable. The record speaks for itself.

Sources: EMS1 / I-Team investigation (2013) · ICMA independent EMS assessment (2014) · KSDK (Oct 2020) · Republic-Times (Dec 2021) · Fox 2 (Jan 2022, Sep 2023) · St. Louis Post-Dispatch / EMS1 (Jul 2022) · STLFD FY24 Annual Report · FY24 AOP · FY26/FY27 City of St. Louis Budget · City Ordinance 71963 · Board Bill 24 (Velazquez, May 2026) · Mehlville FPD, Christian EMS, SCCAD posted compensation · AAA 2022 EMS Workforce Survey · NAEMSP / ACEP UHU benchmarks · BLS median tenure data.