The pending acquisition of Rural/Metro Corp. will cause Fountain Hills officials to explore other service alternatives in case any of those offerings cease in the future.

Rural/Metro is under contract with the town to provide fire protection and emergency medical response services here.

The town has a separate agreement with Rural/Metro for emergency medical transport services.

A Colorado company announced it reached a “definitive agreement” to acquire Scottsdale-based Rural/Metro Corp. through its medical transport subsidiary.

Town Manager Grady Miller said he learned of the upcoming transaction last week when everyone else did.

“Based on preliminary information, it appears that the new company will continue to provide (fire) services,” Miller said.

Miller said he will continue to monitor the merger process to ensure that the town will continue receiving fire and emergency medical services.

“We will also explore other service alternatives so in the event Rural/Metro or its successor company were to decide to discontinue providing fire and emergency medical services, the Town of Fountain Hills will be prepared to provide these services by contract with another service provider or by itself,” he concluded.

Fountain Hills has had a relationship with Rural/Metro dating back 40 years to the early development of the community.

Other surrounding entities over the past decade, however, have dropped contracts with Rural/Metro and formed their own fire departments – Rio Verde Fire District, Fort McDowell and even the City of Scottsdale.

Envision

Envision Healthcare Holdings, based in Greenwood Village, Colo., and its American Medical Response ambulance division are the reported principals in this merger.

The merger agreement includes all of Rural/Metro’s Emergency Medical Services, Fire Services and other business operations.

In an announcement posted on the Envision Healthcare website, William Sanger, chairman, president and CEO, stated healthcare service modes are shifting toward a more coordinated approach.

“The role of medical transportation clinicians takes on greater strategic significance,” Sanger said. “With our advanced mobile delivery model, the practice of paramedics and EMTs is being expanded beyond the traditional role of providing pre-hospital stabilization and transport to healthcare facilities.

“As part of our team-based approach, they apply their clinical training in ways that improve the patient experience at numerous sites, including post-acute settings.

“We believe these initiatives will be enhanced with the combination of AMR and Rural/Metro.”

Scott Bartos, CEO for Rural/Metro, believes the merger is a positive step.

“We have spent the past several years fine-tuning our operations and enhancing the services we provide to our patients and community partners,” Bartos said.

“Envision’s mobile integrated healthcare strategy will allow us to provide even greater value to those constituents while creating new opportunities for our team members.

“Combining with AMR and aligning with Envision Healthcare will enable us to be active contributors to solutions that are shaping the future of healthcare.”

Envision is reporting it has committed financing for the acquisition from Barclays and Goldman, Sachs & Co. The Wall Street Journal is reporting the sale is estimated to be worth about $620 million.

Rural/Metro has experienced financial difficulties in the past, and in 2014 emerged from its most recent bankruptcy. The company provides ambulance services for most of Maricopa County. Rural/Metro has operations in 21 states and nearly 700 communities.

AMR just recently received permission from the Arizona Department of Health Services to compete for medical transport needs in Arizona, and the company has set up shop in the state in Maricopa.

The proposed merger agreement is subject to expiration or termination of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 and fulfillment of certain other customary conditions to closing.

Pending such approvals and fulfillment of other conditions, the companies currently anticipate closing the transaction in the fourth quarter of 2015.