Las Cruces, Doña Ana County to end AMR contract and launch regional EMS system

Fire departments in Las Cruces, Sunland Park, Mesilla and the County will take over ambulance transports by fall, officials confirm

Damien Willis, Organ Mountain News

LAS CRUCES - Doña Ana County and the City of Las Cruces are moving forward with plans to end their long-standing ambulance contract with American Medical Response and transition to a fire-based emergency medical services system — a shift officials say will improve coverage, accountability and local control.

County, city reject AMR's proposed $5.2M subsidy

Assistant County Manager Stephen Lopez confirmed the county has rejected AMR’s recent request to raise its stipend from $3 million to $5.2 million annually.

“The county is not considering it,” Lopez said. “It’s a non-starter.”

Both the City and County are aligned in their decision to allow the AMR contract to expire on Sept. 20. “Yes,” Lopez said, when asked whether the County supports Las Cruces’ choice to decline renegotiation and prepare for termination.

Regional shift to fire-based EMS begins

Lopez said all four local fire departments — Las Cruces, Sunland Park, Mesilla and Doña Ana County — are now coordinating a unified transition plan to take over EMS transport responsibilities.

“We are moving to what’s called fire-based EMS,” Lopez said. “We are doing this in partnership with the City of Las Cruces, the City of Sunland Park and the Town of Mesilla. So all four fire departments are working in lockstep.”

That transition began the weekend of June 29, when the County activated four fully staffed rescue units capable of hospital transport. “These four are going to be dedicated to be able to handle the whole process all the way through to the hospitals,” Lopez said.

Local control cited as a better long-term solution

He emphasized that the move reflects both performance concerns and a broader shift toward public-sector EMS delivery. “We decided that we can provide greater service over time, utilizing our fire departments, as happens in many parts of the country.”

Doña Ana County is supporting the transition financially. Lopez said the County Commission has approved funding for:

• Two new rescue units for Las Cruces
• A second rescue vehicle and two EMT positions in Sunland Park
• Two EMT positions in Mesilla
• Three additional rescue units for Doña Ana County Fire and Rescue

That will bring the region’s combined fleet to 12 ambulances — “significantly higher than AMR’s best day of eight,” Lopez said.

“Minutes save lives. So not having delays, being able to get people there quicker — we are hoping has a very positive impact throughout the county.”

County plans for long-term scalability

The County’s existing lease of its ambulance service license, known as a Certificate of Necessity, will end when the AMR contract does. “Our lease of our license actually didn’t expire until February,” Lopez said, “but it does have a clause that if the contract with the City of Las Cruces ends sooner, then it ends when the City of Las Cruces contract ends.”

Lopez confirmed the regional model will be permanent — and scalable. “Right now, all of our County firefighters are at least EMT-Basics,” he said. “And we are in the process of getting more and more of them trained up to intermediate and paramedic standards. That’s going to be a multi-year process.”

Sunland Park expands EMS readiness

Sunland Park, which had operated under the umbrella of the Las Cruces contract, did not maintain a direct agreement with AMR. However, according to Las Cruces Police Chief Michael Daniels, the City’s professional services agreement required AMR to stage a dedicated unit in Sunland Park 24 hours a day. The same contract mandated around-the-clock unit coverage in Anthony, Chaparral and Hatch, and Sunland Park participated in the region’s Ambulance Oversight Committee.

Daniels said all participating communities are now preparing for the expiration of AMR’s systemwide agreement and are working “to identify how best to move forward by sharing the County’s collective transport capacity.”

The City of Sunland Park confirmed it is preparing to expand its independent EMS capabilities. Communications Coordinator Yasmine Al-Harbi said the city is acquiring a second ambulance, working with the State EMS Bureau to secure appropriate licensing and will receive $250,000 in transition support from Doña Ana County. A mutual aid agreement with County Fire is also being explored to ensure coverage for high-volume calls.

Third-party operators may fill support roles

The County is also preparing to authorize non-emergency providers for interfacility transfers and special events.

“There’s no need for us to tie up fire crews for that kind of thing,” Lopez said. “We actually already have two [third-party providers] that have expressed interest, in addition to AMR.”

Asked whether the County considered alternative full-service contracts, Lopez noted that when the City last put the contract out for bid, “AMR was the only entity that bid on it.”

More EMS staff coming — and more jobs

Ultimately, Lopez said, the transition is about increasing reliability and local coordination.

“This is truly a coordinated system model that should serve our county very well for a long time into the future,” he said. “We’re going to have more staff out there by September 20 than we’ve had any time in history throughout the county.”

The County is actively hiring for EMT positions and plans to launch a new fire academy soon. “If there’s anybody who is excited about being able to do this type of work,” Lopez said, “we have postings up right now.”

Organ Mountain News has reached out to Las Cruces city councilors and Mayor Eric Enriquez. We are awaiting a response and will follow up on this story as it develops.

Damien Willis is founder and editor of Organ Mountain News. If you have a personal story to share or a lead we should follow up on, reach out at OrganMountainNews@gmail.com or connect with him on X at @damienwillis.