South Carolina County to Write off Nearly $15M in Ambulance Bills

Richland County Council members are expected to write off nearly $15 million in debt from people who used the South Carolina county ambulance service and didn’t pay their bills.

The State newspaper reported a County Council committee unanimously recommended the write off last month, and the issue will go before the entire council soon.

County spokeswoman Beverly Harris says about 21,000 bills will be forgiven, and the average bill was about $700. She says the county has never written off ambulance service debt before.

Councilman Greg Pearce says the write off isn’t the ideal solution, but Richland County just couldn’t keep carrying the debt forever.