A 20-year-old Rochester man died on Saturday evening after a motorcycle he was driving collided head-on with a passenger vehicle on Route 33 in Stafford.

Michael J. Ciarpelli was pronounced dead at the scene by a Genesee County Coroner.

According to the Sherriff's Office, the preliminary investigation indicts that Ciarpelli was driving a 2007 black Yamaha motorcycle westbound on Route 33 when he attempted to pass two vehicles in front of him.

A 2024 white Ford Edge was turning left off Griswold Road and began traveling east on Route 33. As Ciarpelli attempted to pass both vehicles, he collided with the Edge head-on in the eastbound travel lane. Ciarpelli was ejected from the motorcycle, and his body came to rest on the north shoulder of Route 33.

The Edge was driven by Luanne E. Andrews, 76, of West Henrietta. Her passenger was Colleen L. O'Mara, 67, of West Henrietta.  The Sheriff's Office provided no information about injuries if any to Andrews or O'Mara.

Sgt. Andrew Hale, Sgt. Richard Schildwaster, Investigator Kevin Forsyth, and deputies Joshua Brabon and Jacob Kipler are investigating the crash. The Byron and South Byron fire departments, Stafford Fire, and Mercy EMS assisted at the scene.

The Kiwanis Club of Batavia hosted a chicken BBQ sale today in the parking lot of the Town of Batavia Fire Department on Lewiston Road. The proceeds benefit club activities. The club's primary mission is to serve and assist the community's children.

Photos by Howard Owens.

Alzheimer's Association of WNY held its annual Walk to End Alzheimer's in Batavia on Saturday morning, with the walk starting and ending in Centennial Park.

Photos by Howard Owens.

Oakfield-Alabama/Elba beat Canisteo-Greenwood on Friday, 21-6.

OAE Statistics:

• Sr RB/LB Avery Watterson - 14 Carries, 155 Yards, 2 TDs, 10 total tackles 
• Sr RB/LB Jack Cianfrini - 10 Carries, 127 Yards, 1 TD, 8 Total Tackles, 1 PBU
• JR LB Dominic West - 8 Tackles
• JR DB Hunter Tobolski - 7 Tackles

“Tonight was a good example of what our federation games will look like this year," said Head Coach Tyler Winters. "In Class D, you can bet that every week will be a battle.  Tonight was a four-quarter battle with a tough CG team.  I am proud of our guys for settling into the game and closing this out confidently in their execution.  We’ll enjoy this one tonight, but it’s back to the grind tomorrow to prepare for our next tough Class D matchup.”

Also in Genesee County football:

Alexander beat Attica 21-0. Last season, Alexander and Attica was a merged team. Now the neighboring rivals again and Friday's game was the first time the two teams met on the gridiron since 2017. The Trojans won then, too, 20-3. The game was played at Van Detta with Alexander the home team. Alexander QB Brody Heckman opened the scoring midway through the first quarter on a 19-yard touchdown run.  Melissa Sawyer kicked the PAT for a 7-0 lead.  The Trojan offense moved the ball after an interception by Defensive Back Jacob Brooks.  It culminated with another Heckman TD run on a QB draw from 33 yards out.  With the Sawyer kick, it was 14-0 heading into the half.  In the second half, Jacob Brooks had his second interception of the night and returned the ball 37 yards for a TD.  Sawyer capped it with her third PAT.  Defensively Ryder Riechert led the Trojans with 8 tackles and Dylan Pohl had 4 tackles two of which were tackles for loss. Heckman finished with 82 yards rushing, Kingston Woods had 50 on 12 carries, and Ryder Riechert rushed for 46 on 12 carries. Trojans move to 2-0 on the season.

LeRoy/Cal-Mum beat Dansville/Wayland-Cohocton 20-6. Cameron Riggi scored on a two-yard run in the first quarter. Brady McClurg scored on a one-yard run and on a 65-yard pass to Xavier Bowen. Dawson Stephens scored Dansville's lone TD on a 13-yard pass to Evan Sedore. Jack Egeling ran for 77 yards on 18 carries, Riggi 18 on nine carries, On defense, Dillon Alcott had six tackles. DJ O'Geen had five tackles with a sack.

Avon beat York/Pavilion, 33-7.

Geneseo/Mount Morris beat Notre Dame/Byron-Bergen, 48-15

Photos by Debra Reilly

Once Michele Westfall-Owens was teaching yoga, she was always looking for her own perfect space to carve out a studio and set up shop. When that finally happened, an impromptu conversation helped to put the perfect name on it, she said.

“I feel like atmosphere is important,” Westfall-Owens said during an interview with The Batavian. “This opportunity happened, and I was talking to a yoga friend, and she’s a good friend and a student, and she said ‘you finally have your own space,’ and I said, yes, but it’s not my space, it’s our space. And that is how the name happened. It’s something I want to share; it’s not mine. So that was kind of a cool way to come up with the name, it just kind of happened like that.”

Our Space Yoga & Wellness is an inclusive yoga studio at 58 Main St., Le Roy, that offers a variety of weekly yoga classes for all levels and ages, from beginner to advanced. 

Westfall-Owens retired in September 2020 after 30 years in public service. She began practicing yoga and then took teacher training, which some people do to learn more about the practice. For Westfall-Owens, her passion prompted her to do more with that additional knowledge than keep it to herself.

“I actually started practicing yoga probably five years prior to taking my training. And I just fell in love with the practice. It was me; it just suited me. And the more I looked into it, the more I kind of knew that's what I wanted to do,” she said. “I wasn't sure I wanted to teach. But then the opportunities kind of came along. When I took the training, I wasn't sure if I was actually going to end up teaching or if I was just, you know, because some people take the yoga teacher training just to learn more about yoga. And then, once I completed my training and retired, I did find that I really enjoyed teaching.”

She became a working teacher and expanded her offerings to include chair yoga, vinyasa and hatha yoga, kids' yoga, and restorative yoga. 

She had her own transformational experiences with the age-old exercise (it has been traced to Northern India 5,000 years ago), having been one to sit at a desk for three decades with her job as chief clerk of Genesee County Surrogate’s Court. 

After all of that sitting, there was definite stress that radiated throughout her body with discomfort, she said. And she wasn't into the more traditional methods of exercise.

“I don’t enjoy going to a gym and working out, so I was looking for an alternative to getting my body moving in a healthy way,” she said. “We go through life and we have our aches and pains, and having a desk job for 30 years, just being in that sedentary position, sitting at a desk, I did have the aches and pains, backaches, the shoulder aches, neck pains, and all the stress. And so what one major thing that yoga did for me was I physically feel better right now, I turned 60 this year. I physically feel better now than I did in my 20s and 30s. True story, because I move and I stretch.” 

She has also noted a marked difference when there’s been a lapse in doing her yoga moves, she said: the pain and stiffness return. 

Our Space has one main room that accommodates a class of about 12 people, a meditation room and a bathroom. In addition to her, there are four other teachers: Tracy Martorana, Tammy Reding, Carin Caruso, and Ken Plossl, plus Reiki practitioners Tracy Flansburg and Danielle Maloy.

In order to be a certified yoga teacher, she had to obtain 200 hours of yoga teacher training, and is a member of Yoga Alliance, she said. 

She also offers special offerings throughout the year, and in the fall, a four-week Yoga for Back Pain series, a Herbal Tea-Blending workshop and a monthly Journaling Club will be offered. 

"Whether you enjoy a calming restorative or yin session, an invigorating vinyasa practice, or something in between, there’s a class for you,” she said. “Our Space Yoga teachers are certified and trained according to Yoga Alliance standards. Our caring teachers approach each class as an opportunity to offer an enjoyable, safe and meaningful yoga experience.”

She invites visitors to “come as you are” and remember that Our Space is your space. 

Vinyasa yoga connects breath with movement and builds heat with sun salutations, flowing sequences and balancing poses, then cools down for a final resting pose. 

Gentle Vinyasa is a slower-paced practice that she says is perfect for all levels. This class builds strength, flexibility and focus.

Slow Flow moves smoothly through transitions and keeps longer holds in postures, emphasizing awareness of body, mind and breath.

Yin yoga is a slow-paced, passive style of yoga that involves holding poses for an extended time to access deep connective tissues.

Chair yoga is a gentle practice that includes modified postures while seated or using a chair for support. It improves strength, flexibility and balance without overstressing the joints.

Kids' yoga for grades one through four includes games, stories, and activities to build confidence and strength and practice ways to feel happier and more peaceful inside.

Yoga for Beginners & Beyond moves through basic yoga postures while allowing time for demonstration, inquiry and playful practice. 

Restorative yoga uses props to fully support the body in poses for an extended time. It also includes calming meditation, soothing music, aromatherapy and gentle touch to help heal the body and mind.

What is Reiki? Introduces folks to the gentle, non-intrusive technique that uses energy to encourage healing of the body, mind and spirit. A reiki practitioner uses hand positions over the body to move and clear energy that may be “stuck” or out of balance. 

How Do I Meditate? Meditation trains your awareness to tune out the noise and allows you to tune in to your own being. A regular meditation practice lowers stress, calms anxiety and builds self-acceptance.

For more offerings and information, go HERE

People should be excited about attending St. Paul Lutheran Church in Batavia each Sunday, says newly ordained and installed minister Thompson Marin, because they will hear the word of God without any innovations.

"We believe the Bible is the Word of God. There is no error in it. We teach people that the Bible interprets itself," Marin said to The Batavian. "Then, just to make it more exciting to people, we teach Christ crucified. We teach the Word of God. We don't add to it. We don't mix it with other teaching outside the Bible. Christ is at the center of our teaching."

Marin, his wife Erika, and their two children, Micaiah, 4, and Olivia, 1, are new to Batavia. St. Paul is Marin's first calling as a pastor. He recently completed four years of study at Concordia Theological Seminary in Fort Wayne, Ind.

"I was praying for a church with a school," Marin said. "When I saw that (St. Paul) had a school, I was excited to see how God would lead me to help the school and the church."

Marin was born in Haiti and immigrated with his family to Brooklyn in 2007. He has been a Christian since childhood, growing up a Baptist. His uncle was a Lutheran pastor in Haiti. 

He graduated from Brooklyn College in 2013, moved to South Dakota for more schooling, and then returned to Haiti, where he met Erika. She was on a Lutheran mission trip. They were married in 2016. 

"I was very used to how (Lutherans) do church and what they believe, teach and confess," Marin said. "I became a Lutheran after I met my wife in 2013. I got used to going to church with her, used to the teaching in the Lutheran churches, and then I wanted to marry her, so one of the requirements was for me to become a Lutheran, and it wasn't hard for me, because I was already used to what they do and what they teach and believe."

The Lutheran Church was founded by Martin Luther (1483 to 1546) in Torgau, Germany. Luther led the Reformation, a break with Roman Catholicism, in the early 16th Century. A key point of Luther's theology was he rejected the Catholic Church's role as an intermediary between the people and God. He believed that salvation comes only through God's mercy. He rejected papal authority. He believed the Bible is the central authority for all Christian beliefs.

The Lutheran Church Missouri Synod governs St. Paul. It is a conservative denomination whose core belief is that people are saved from their sins by God's grace alone, through faith alone, on the basis of Scripture alone. The Synod holds to the Luthern Confessions, which include the Apostles' Creed and the Nicene Creed.

After joining the church, Marin became interested in attending seminary, not to become a pastor but to deepen his understanding of the faith. 

"The people I interacted with really encouraged me to follow this call, and that's what I did," Marin said.

As Marin completed his education, the members of St. Paul contacted church leaders and informed them there was an opening for a new pastor at St. Paul. They requested a recent seminary graduate, Marin said, and district leaders reviewed the needs of the church and the available seminary candidates and selected Marin as the best fit for St. Paul.

Besides the school, Marin said he was excited to come to Batavia because his wife likes small towns, and it's only six hours from New York City, where his parents and sister still live.

Given his wife's experience with missions, it's not surprising that Marin is eager to see St. Paul grow its efforts in international missions. St. Paul's does sponsor missionaries in Japan.  He thinks the church might be able to grow in this area.

"That was really something that I admired when I met my wife. They were helping with a school and an orphanage in Haiti, in the town where I was from,  and I want to continue that aspect of ministry, reaching out to the unchurched, helping those who cannot, who don't have access to certain things and sharing Christ's love with them."

He said it's something he intends to talk to St. Paul's leadership team about. 

I know a lot of missionaries," Marin said. "They do need help from the churches here in the States. That's something I still need to figure out and probably start on, but it is a big part of sharing God's love."

He sees St. Paul's school as a great resource for reaching the local community.

"I think St Paul plays a great role in showing God's love, especially in our school," Marin said. "The school is a really great way of reaching out to parents and parents who are not Lutherans, even just reaching out to them and teaching them how we do things and extend God's forgiveness to them. And if they want to come and check it out, they can.

He said not all children attending the school are Christians, so the school offers an opportunity to learn about God's love for them. 

"We tell them that God loves them every day. I think it's a really good thing," Marin said. "And the other thing is, their parents are invited to come to chapel on Wednesdays so they can hear us teaching them and see how we do it, and also they can hear God's message to them, too, and it's a great way of reaching out to the community."

On Sundays, visitors to the Church can expect a conservative service.

Lutheran services tend to be more liturgical than many other Protestant churches. Marin said people who come to St. Pauls can expect more traditional hymns.

"We conserve all the ways that the Church Fathers used to worship and how they did the service, with no new ideas," Marin said. The way we do things is very traditional. We do have some contemporary songs we sing here because the members are used to doing it in the past, but we're trying to move more toward a traditional way of doing things."

Marin acknowledges that these are challenging times for churches. In 2021, church membership in the U.S. fell below 50 percent for the first time. Marin doesn't believe innovations in theology are needed to bring people back to church. He believes the Word of God is sufficient.

"I think we need to stay faithful," Marin said. "We need to believe that God will send His Spirit. The Holy Spirit will work in people's hearts and change their minds, and then people will be attracted to the church. People will come to the church through the Gospel being preached, and not by changing how we teach it or how we worship, incorporating new things, new theology, and new ways of interpreting the Gospel, the Bible. I don't see it that way. I think we need to stay faithful, and I think that way, people will know the truth." 

A revised wastewater agreement between the town and city of Batavia may rectify a capacity issue between those two municipalities, however, it came too late for HP Hood’s $120 million expansion project, says Lynne Bohan, group vice president of Communications & Government Affairs for HP Hood LLC.

HP Hood altered its course after being notified that permitting was not approved for the project in the Batavia Agri-Business Park, Bohan said. The expansion was to be 32,500 square feet and was to create 48 new jobs and retain 455 full-time jobs at Genesee Valley Agri-Business Park for a projected local economic impact of $49.87 million in wages and tax revenue.

“Hood implemented a tactical pause on the expansion projects in progress. We remained in contact with local government representatives to gain an understanding of constraints to approving permits,” Bohan said to The Batavian Friday. “Discussions continued regarding project support while we worked on contingency plans. This was not an immediate decision and was just finalized recently as we reviewed our updated business strategy.”

Hood officials opted to expand the scope of “a similar expansion project already in progress at a similar Hood facility on the East Coast,” Bohan said, adding that the company will consider future projects at the Batavia site. “Yes, we have other expansion projects for our Batavia site proposed. Timing is dependent on business needs and appropriate support from the community.”

The city of Batavia temporarily halted Hood’s $120 million expansion project in the town of Batavia due to “violations of the town’s contracted wastewater capacity limit” earlier this year as both municipalities then worked to rectify the situation, City Manager Rachael Tabelski had said.

Tabelski sent the town Planning Board a letter on March 13 notifying the group that the city had not been informed in a timely manner that the town had been established as lead agency for the proposed expansion of process lines at HP Hood on Feb. 13, 2024, and the city did not receive word of that until March 4. The city objected to the town acting as the lead agency, Tabelski said.

Tabelski said during council’s Tuesday meeting that the situation had potentially been rectified with a revised wastewater agreement between the town and city of Batavia. She also said that “we will lift the SEQR challenge to the HP Hood project,” regarding a state environmental review. 

Genesee County Economic Development Center had approved sales tax exemptions estimated at $4.52 million, a property tax abatement estimated at $549,705 base on an incremental increase in assessed value, and a mortgage tax exemption estimated at $536,000, bringing the value of the proposed financial agreement to approximately $5.6 million. 

GCEDC President Mark Masse was not available for comment Friday.

Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown can open doors, says Western Regional Off-Track Betting Corp. Chairman Dennis Bassett.

He can open doors in Albany. He can open doors with the office of Gov. Kathy Hochul.

"The OTB is looking to have good, solid representation in Albany," Bassett said. "We feel that what better individual is there who could help us open doors that we haven't been able to open before than a five-term mayor with a legislative background?"

A unanimous board vote on Sept. 5 authorized Bassett to open contract negotiations to hire Brown as OTB's new CEO and president. Bassett said the negotiations are ongoing. Brown has yet to officially accept the job offer.

The 65-year-old Brown became Buffalo's mayor in 2006. He served in the state Senate from 2001 to 2005. He was a member of the Buffalo Common Council from 1996 to 2001. He has a dual bachelor of arts degree in political science and journalism from Buffalo State College.  He worked in sales for a year at Bristol-Myers before starting a legislative staff career. 

OTB reportedly advertised the job as paying between $280,000 and $320,000 annually. Henry Wojtaszek, the outgoing CEO and president, makes $264,898.

"The key thing that we have to do is get someone that can open doors that we don't have open," Bassett said. "We're running a pretty well-oiled machine now. I think that what I have stressed consistently as board chair is that we may have some government obligations, but we have run Batavia Downs as a business. Mayor Brown assured us that his business hat would be on at all times and that he would be able to focus on how we can generate more revenue for the 17 municipalities."

For several years, Erie County Democrats, such as Sen. Tim Kennedy, Sen. Sean Ryan, and Comptroller Kevin Hardwick, have attacked the OTB and its leadership, making unsubstantiated corruption claims. Kennedy successfully pushed legislation that changed the OTB board's voting composition, giving Democrats a weighted vote majority even though Democrats represent fewer jurisdictions on the board than Republicans. 

Genesee County is leading a legal challenge to the voting change.

Sen. George Borrello, who represents many of the rural counties that own a portion of the corporation, said last week that Brown's selection smelled of corrupt politics.

"The ‘culture of corruption’ is actually the way that Erie County and the City of Buffalo have rigged the Western Regional OTB board," Borrello said. 

Borrello praised Wojtaszek's work to increase revenue and profitability at Batavia Downs and expressed concern that the "winning team" was being replaced by political patronage jobs.

Throughout the search process, Bassett has vowed that politics would not play a part in selecting a new CEO. On Thursday, he told The Batavian that, indeed, politics was not a factor in the decision to hire Brown.

"The appointment was based upon a global search that narrowed down the best candidates based on the key focus areas that we were looking at -- C-suite experience -- government involvement, budget management, and public benefit corporation experience," Bassett said. "As a chairman of the search committee, politics never entered into our decision-making as we looked at the resumes and evaluated each of the resumes and the talent of the individuals. The press may have predicted who would be the next President and CEO but that did not influence our selection process."

So far, Republican members of the board -- who all supported the job offer to Brown -- have been mum about their decision.  Asked if he had any insight into why Republicans backed Brown for the job, Bassett said it was because of the recommendation of the search committee.

"The reason they supported (the committee's recommendation) is because we stressed very seriously and very strongly that we are going to continue our focus on running Western Regional OTB as a solid business and that the outside world may play the politics game, but as long as we, the board, stay steadfast on the fact that we are trying to deliver as positive a results as we can to small municipalities who depend on OTB a lot more than some of the big Rochesters and Buffalos and Erie counties and Monroe counties, that we want to continue to give them the kind of revenue they can use to fill some of the gaps that they have."

He said that only happens if the organization is run like a business.

"Once again, the press and the outside world may continue to have us fall into this political game, but those individuals in those small municipalities bought off on the idea that we're not going to succumb to that," he said.

Bassett said Wojtaszek and Brown have a good relationship and he's expecting a smooth transition.

Wojtaszek is scheduled to leave the job on Dec. 31.

Bassett isn't expecting any issues for current employees.

"I think the employee base is very comfortable with me, and they're very comfortable with how our board is being run, and I think we'll have no problems with the leadership team and the board and the employees working at Batavia Downs," he said.

Bassett stressed that there are issues that need to be addressed in Albany that haven't been addressed until now, issues that must be addressed if Batavia Downs and the OTB are going to increase revenue and profits for the municipalities. Brown can open those doors, he said.

Batavia Downs has achieved record-breaking revenue two years running and 2024 is shaping up to be another record year, Bassett noted.

"We know that we can't grow this business and be successful if we don't look at how we can go into different ventures, and we can't do the same things we've been doing tomorrow that we're doing today and be successful," Bassett said.

He initially declined to address the specific issues Brown would be asked to tackle. When asked about harness racing, which might be considered a loss-leader for the corporation, Bassett said Brown might address it; he said that is one area to look at, but so are branch operations.

"We're putting together a strategic framework that looks at how we should be running this business five years from now," Bassett said.

Besides harness racing and branch operations, there is also sports betting.

"We need to look at sports betting. Sports betting is very important moving forward. We, the small racinos and casinos such as ours, don't have it. We have to fight for that in Albany, and hopefully, Mayor Brown can help us do that."

Batavia Downs has also been locked out of table games. Bassett said he's a blackjack player himself and would like to see Batavia Downs be able to offer poker and blackjack to customers.

"We're not going to leave any stone unturned for us to grow this business and look at how we can be competitive in the future," he said.

It was the battle of the Blue Devils as Batavia took on Brockport late Thursday afternoon in Monroe County tennis action in Brockport. 

Batavia took all three singles matches and the first doubles contest to improve to 3-1 on the season. The deciding point came down to the third singles match as Batavia’s Eliana Cossitt won in three sets. 

After winning the first set 6-1, Cossitt lost in a second set tiebreak 4-7 to set up a thrilling third set. After falling behind 0-2 to Brockport’s Alex Salcido, Cossitt took control and gave Batavia the point they needed with a brilliant 6-3, third set victory.  

Batavia got wins from first singles player Kelsey Kirkwood 6-1, 6-3 and second singles player Ally Debo, who was equally impressive with a 6-2, 6-1 triumph. 

The first doubles tandem of Drew Stevens and Rahmeto Reinhardt remained unbeaten on the season, with a 6-3, 6-2 win. Batavia will hit the road again Friday at Penfield.

Information provided by Batavia Head Coach Jim Fazio.

To view or purchase photos, click here.

You might call it an open house -- those timeless school events that bring parents to the school to meet their children's teachers.

But in Pavilion, folks call it the Gopher Gathering.

On Thursday, Pavilion High School held its 5th annual Gopher Gathering.

The event is a chance for the school community to come together to enjoy good food, live music, and games and also learn about academic opportunities available at the school.

Besides learning about classes they might have overlooked, it's a chance for students and parents to learn about campus activities, including clubs students might join.

Photos by Howard Owens.

Press Release:

HomeCare & Hospice of Batavia received a $1,000 grant from The WalMart Pharmacy Batavia, 4133 Veterans Memorial Drive to continue helping families
maintain independence at home, with compassion.

Melissa Sullivan, Chief Executive Officer of HomeCare &Hospice, stated, “It’s an incredible
honor to be chosen for a SparkGood grant. HomeCare & Hospice depends greatly on donations, grants, and fundraisers to raise awareness of our services. Being selected from among the many nonprofits in Genesee County is truly humbling.”

HomeCare & Hospice is a multi-disciplinary approach to end-of-life care.  It brings together a team of nurses, physicians, social workers, spiritual care providers, aide staff and volunteers to provide the care necessary to allow a patient to pass away, peacefully in a dignified manner in their own homes. This program provides quality pain and symptom management so that the patient's final days, weeks, months have as much quality of life as possible.

The ability to manage a patient's symptoms also reduces stress on caregivers, family, and friends.  It also
prevents unnecessary hospitalizations and emergency room visits.  Hospice makes it possible for patients to pass in their own homes.

According to the SparkGood website, the grants are awarded to a variety of organizations, such
as animal shelters, elder services, and community clean-up projects. In FY2023, their stores
and Sam’s clubs provided more than $45 million in local grants.

Somnit Wilson, Walmart Pharmacy Manager, added, “Why did I choose HCH for this grant? End-of-life care is often overlooked in many communities, yet hospice offers invaluable support to families. It provides essential care that brings comfort and healing to those navigating the end-of-life journey.”

Being an emergency medical service provider in a rural, lower-income population certainly has its challenges, says Dane Sprague, president of Le Roy Ambulance Service, Inc. Board of Directors.

A good percentage of folks using the ambulance service are on Medicaid or Medicare and/or request not to be taken to a hospital, which either cannot be billed or reimbursed.

“I find a good portion of what we do goes unreimbursed in terms of Le Roy Ambulance Service. We go out on a call, and we may provide treatment to an individual that doesn't involve transportation. And we get no reimbursement from the government programs for Medicare or Medicaid for that type of treatment. And if it's a Medicaid patient, we can't even bill them for that,” Sprague said Wednesday to The Batavian. “I haven't seen the specifics of the legislation or what type of rate structure they're proposing, but anything at this point would be beneficial because, as I said, we provide so much unreimbursed care.

“In a typical month, this past month of August, I think we had 125 calls that we went out on. Only 87 of those were actually billable,” he said. “We’re providing a lot of unreimbursed care to people. If they don’t pay us we still can’t refuse service. If somebody needs care they’re going to get care regardless of their insurance status or how much they may owe us for past visits or whatever. If they’re a Medicaid patient, there’s no provision for that.”

He is hopeful that Gov. Kathy Hochul will sign a bill endorsed by the state Association of Counties this week that would allow EMS agencies and ambulance networks to be reimbursed for treating patients at the scene of the incident and/or transporting them to non-emergency room care facilities for treatment and triage.

The legislation has been in the works, and the association adopted a resolution during its annual fall meeting this week. Here is the full resolution awating Hochul's signature. The legislation is now on Hochul’s desk for approval. It is considered critical to ensure that EMS providers, including Le Roy Ambulance Service and Mercy EMS, two providers under contract for Genesee County, are financially stable and can properly operate and serve residents of New York State.

The EMS legislation only covers Medicaid Insurance, which has not been reimbursing providers, county Manager Matt Landers said, and does not cover Medicare or private insurance. 

“I support this resolution as it compensates emergency responders for sevices provided and helps shore up the finances of our resource-strapped first responder agencies,” Landers said.  “The current model of only reimbursing for transports to a hospital ignore the many instances where a patient receives costly treatment at the scene or when the ambulance transports the patient to a more ideal location for the specific situation, such as an urgent care facility or a mental health treatment facility.”

Genesee County has seen a gradual increase in the need for Medicaid, a joint federal and state program that provides health coverage for people with limited income and resources. It has grown from 13.3% a decade ago to about 20 percent in 2022, according to datausa.

About 70 percent of  Le Roy Ambulance Service’s patients are covered by government programs such as Medicaid, Sprague said. And as a result, “we’re operating at a deficit because of poor reimbursement,” he said. 

“A good portion of what we do goes unreimbursed. If we provide treatment to an individual but provide no transportation to a hospital, we receive no reimbursement. We cannot even bill them for that,” he said. “Anything at this point would be beneficial.”

“(Insurance/Medicare) only pay because of a transport to the hospital,” he said. “Anything that will enhance our ability … would be great. Hopefully  Kathy Hochul will sign it.”

Under current law, EMS agencies are only reimbursed when transporting a patient to a hospital emergency room. This arrangement is not only financially challenging for EMS agencies, but it also contributes to patients being transported to healthcare settings when a hospital emergency room may not be the most appropriate setting to administer treatment.

Additionally, hospital emergency rooms across the state are already beyond capacity, county officials said, with extraordinary wait times for admission to a hospital bed and is often the most expensive care setting possible for the patient.

It’s not like there haven’t been exceptions in the past. During the COVID pandemic, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) allowed waivers for ambulance services to be reimbursed for treatment in place and transportation to an alternative provider, but those ended in May 2023. Data from these waivers indicates that reimbursing EMS for treatment in place and transportation to an alternate provider would save the federal government around $2 billion annually, and commensurate savings at the state level, according to a related press release.

Allowing EMS practitioners to treat patients at their homes or the scene of the incident and receive reimbursement for delivering those services enables EMS agencies to return to action immediately—rather than waiting for a hospital to admit their patient.

Another issue cited by officials is that many patients dial 9-1-1 to seek emergency medical treatment when they are experiencing a mental health crisis. Allowing EMS agencies to transport a patient immediately to a behavioral healthcare facility not only expedites the patient's mental health treatment but also relieves inpatient hospital mental health units from having to respond to every mental health incident.

Reducing those wait times is one important benefit of this legislation, said Scott Wooton, executive vice president of Mercy Flight Inc., while being able to bill for non transports would be another. 

“Transporting to alternate destinations, as opposed to a hospital, as far as how that's going to impact EMS, it's not a huge difference. I mean, the time to transport somebody to an urgent care or a doctor's office as opposed to a hospital, is roughly about the same,” he said. “Where it could really have an impact is less critical patients going to an urgent care, as opposed to a hospital, is going to help reduce wait times at  ERs. I think it's a good move in terms of utilizing the hospital and utilizing the health resources that are out there in a way that makes sense, where you're not sending patients to an ER that maybe have something that could be treated by an urgent care, because wait times in emergency rooms can be an issue.”

Providers will have to work through the logistics of finding urgent cares that will accept patients via ambulance, and that will get EMS providers back in service more quickly, he said, versus having to wait at the emergency room with a patient while he or she is getting admitted. 

The other issue has been when providers complete an on-the-spot evaluation but the patient refuses transport to a hospital. Those cases have not been billable, and although this particular legislation isn’t going to change those scenarios involving private insurance and Medicare, it would ramp up payments from the Medicaid system that has not been reimbursing for such services.

“The fact that the state is now backing that, insurance will now be compelled to cover that we want to be reimbursed, that is smart legislation,” Wooton said.

“You know, we're really not in the business of just transporting patients from one place to another; we're in the business of being ready for emergencies. So anything that we can do to shorten the amount of time that it takes for us to get somebody where they need to go and get back and get ready again for the next one is exciting,” he said. “But then, in terms of the ability to bill for a treat and release, or for a patient refusal, it depends on how that actually works out.”

Given the bill’s freshness, he wasn’t familiar with how billing will work, though he pointed to Medicare as the largest payer for most emergency medical services, he said. Medicare is for people age 65 and older. 

“I don’t know how the law will interact with this plan; it’s a little too early to tell the financial impact, but it’s a good thing for patients, and a good thing for people,” he said.

Wooton is happy about the other piece of legislation, the Direct Pay to Ambulance Service law, already passed and ready to take effect on Jan. 1, that will allow for direct payments from the insurance company to the provider rather than to the patient. When payments went to the patient, there would be a lag in the money being turned over to the EMS provider, Wooton said, and this measure will streamline that process and get payments where they belong more quickly.

“This will pay pay to the provider and bring insurance company to the table and are paying fairly and timely at a rate that allows us to be sustainable,” he said. “We need sustainable ambulance services, and the only way to do that is to make sure that they’re being reimbursed fairly.”

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Christine R. Brien, 53, of West Main Street Road, Batavia, and Johnathan B. White, 32, of West Main Street Road, Batavia, are charged with false written statement.  AT 4:11 p.m. on Aug. 23, Deputy Alexander Hadsall was dispatched to a report of a disturbance where a male had a firearm. When Hadsall arrived on scene, he was advised the male had left the scene on foot in an unknown direction. The male returned and was placed into custody. After further investigation, Hadsall determined both subjects had signed sworn statements that were not true. They were both arrested and processed at the Genesee County and released. 

Chupco Harjo, 33, Council Hosue Road, Tonawanda Indian Reservation, is charged with assault 2nd and criminal mischief 3rd, and Rhonda Nancy Harjo, 68,  of Council Hosue Road, Tonawanda Indian Reservation, is charged with assault 3rd and criminal mischief 3rd. The suspects are accused of assaulting another person at 5:50 a.m. on Aug. 22 at a location on Council House Road, causing physical injury and of damaging the victim's mobile phone. Both were jailed pending arraignment.

Willie Albert Sabb, Jr., 50, unknown address, Batavia, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance 7th, false personation, aggravated unlicensed operation 3rd, failure to stop at stop sign, speeding. Sabb was stopped at 4:54 p.m. on Aug. 24 on South Lake Road, Le Roy, by Deputy Nicholas Jennings. Sabb was allegedly found in possession of crack cocaine and drug paraphernalia. He was also wanted on a Family Court warrant. He was issued an appearance ticket.

Ashley Jordan Gallagher, 35, no permanent residence, Rochester, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance 7th and tampering with physical evidence. Gallagher was allegedly found in possession of crack cocaine during a traffic stop at 4:54 p.m. on Aug. 24 on South Lake Road, Le Roy, by Deputy Nicholas Jennings. She also allegedly had suspected drug contraband concealed on her person. She was issued an appearance ticket.

Cain Alexander Catino, 53, of Valley View Drive, Batavia, is charged with falsifying business records 1st. Catino is accused of signing a Pawn King bill of sale stating that he was the sole owner of property that was allegedly stolen. He was held pending arraignment.

Summer Rose Prentice, 31, of Drake Street, Oakfield, is charged with criminal mischief 4th. Prentice is accused of intentionally damaging the property of another person at a location on Drake Street, Oakfield, at 12:30 a.m. on Aug. 22. There is no release information available.

Jonathan Mathew Toledo, 32, of Victory Avenue, Hamburg, is charged with harassment 2nd. Toledo is accused of fighting at Darien Lake on Aug. 20 at 10:07 p.m.  He was held for arraignment.

Jorden Elizabeth Prescott, 30, of no address listed, Batavia, is charged with criminal mischief 4th and harassment 2nd. Prescott is accused of kicking and punching a victim multiple times during a fight at a location on Oak Orchard Road, Elba, at 11:48 a.m. on Aug. 24. She is also accused of breaking the victim's property. She was held pending arraignment.

Aldrin Josue Solorzano, 23, of Clifton Avenue, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Solorzano is accused of stealing merchandise from Walmart at 9:52 p.m. on Aug. 23. Solorzano was processed at the Genesee County Jail and released. Also charged was Yanela Karen Molina, 23, of Clifton Avenue, Batavia.

Jennifer Jean McCarty, 52, of Macomber Road, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. McCarty is accused of shoplifting at Walmart on Aug. 26 at 4:32 p.m. She was processed at the Genesee County Jail and released.

Brett Nelson Mogoffin, 49, of River Road, Pavilion, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child and criminal obstruction of breathing.  Mogoffin was arrested on Aug. 29 in connection with an incident reported at 8:18 p.m. on Aug. 22 at a location on River Road, Pavilion. He was issued an appearance ticket.

Eric Nshimirimana, 28, of Churchlea Place, Rochester, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, and speeding. Nshimirimana was topped at 2:41 a.m. on Aug. 30 on Clinton Street Road, Stafford, by Sgt. Mathew Clor. He was released on an appearance ticket.

Kathleen Melissa Pritchard, 45, Main Road, Stafford, is charged with criminal mischief 3rd and harassment 2nd.  Pritchard is accused of breaking a TV by knocking it off its stand and hitting a person multiple times in the face during a disturbance on Main Road, Stafford at 10:55 a.m. on Aug. 29.

Holly Lynn Fearby, 34, of Edwards Street, Batavia, is charged with welfare fraud 3rd and offering a false instrument for filing. Fearby is accused of failing to list sales income enabling her to received $3,505 in SNAP benefits. She was arrested on Sept. 2 and held pending arraignment.

Charles William Piehl, 56, no address given, Cohocton, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance 7th, driving on a suspended registration, and driving without insurance. Piehl was stopped at 3:04 a.m. on Aug. 3 on Clinton Street Road, Bergen, by Deputy Soren Calderon.  He was allegedly found in possession of drug paraphernalia with narcotics residue. He was released. Also charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance was Christina Maria Semmel, 21, no address given, Rochester.

Gustavo Segundo Diaz-Carvajal, 29, of Federal Drive, Batavia, is charged with assault 2nd.  Diaz-Carvajal is accused of assaulting another detainee at the Buffalo Federal Detention Facility at 7:35 p.m. on June 23 with the intent to cause serious physical injury. He was arrested on Sept. 4.

Louis Steven Szabo, 24, of Hutchins Street, Batavia, and Brandon Marshall Weig, 36, of Vine Street, Batavia, are charged with petit larceny and conspiracy 6th. Szabo and Weig are accused of working together to shoplift from Walmart at 5:59 p.m. on Sept. 3. They were processed at the Genesee County Jail and released.