Arizona fire department contracts with debt collection service

The governing board of the Joy Lane, Arizona-based Fort Mojave Mesa Fire Department recently agreed to hire a debt collection service to recoup more than $120,000 in unpaid ambulatory services, the Daily News reports. In total, there are more than 100 delinquent accounts on file, many of which were not even attempting to make payments. As a result of "exhausting its other options," the department decided collections was the correct route to go. The department is owed $123,367. Another $7,284 also had to be written off because indebted patients had passed away, while six accounts were written off because of billing errors. Because of the large amount of debt accrued, it was recommended by board member Rod Burgess that the department include language in future accounts that places greater responsibility on the patient for any bills that go unpaid. The news source notes in a separate article that the Fort Mojave firefighters committed a good deed recently, volunteering their time on Saturday to pick up illegally dumped trash across local roads.