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Multnomah County announced late Thursday it plans to extend its current ambulance contract with American Medical Response through the end of February 2019. It was set to expire in August of 2018.
The announcement reflects the complexity of the county's goal of changing the current approach to responding to medical emergencies.
County officials issued a request for proposals for a 10-year contract, which could be worth $750 million, on Aug. 4, with bids due on Nov. 6.
That due date has now also been extended. Bids are due Feb. 5, 2018.
Multnomah County Health Officer Dr. Paul Lewis oversees the ambulance program.
He and his colleagues want to change the current system by including electronic medical records and changing the way 911 operators take information from callers. The county's goal is to gather more specific details about the medical emergency so they can dispatch the appropriate personnel; reduce the use of lights and sirens for calls that are not life-threatening and reduce the number of people transported to emergency rooms.
Currently the fire bureaus in Portland and Gresham respond to nearly 90 percent of medical emergency calls.
Research in other cities has shown that number can be cut by about a third. Fire officials and the unions for both bureaus have raised a number of concerns about changing the 911 system but the county dismissed protests of the proposed new contract.
The county says the delay in finalizing a new contract are now necessary "while a new medical triage system is integrated into the current 911 system."
But Lewis said the changes will happen.
"We're looking forward to integrating a widely used medical triage system that will help us put the right resources in the right place at the right time," he said in a statement.