As possible tariffs on automobiles loom, some companies are hoping to receive an exemption for emergency vehicles like ambulances, to avoid a spike in the cost of purchasing them.
Mark Babony is the director of sales and marketing for Rowland Emergency and Specialty Vehicles, a Canadian company that will soon deliver a mobile clinic van to Sault Ste. Marie Paramedic Services.
It sells emergency vehicles and other emergency equipment to customers in Canada and the U.S.
Manufacturing an emergency response vehicle requires parts to be sourced from a number of companies, including in the U.S.
Babony said the Toronto-based company has already been hit with increased costs from the American company that supplies its emergency lights.
"I don't know what the future holds, but if it's as bad as what the administration claims it's going to be as to how aggressive they are going to be with tariffs, I wouldn't be surprised if our emergency response vehicles could increase in cost up to 10 per cent," he said.
Some or all of that cost increase could end up being passed on to the customer, which in many cases is a taxpayer funded agency like the District of Sault Ste. Marie Social Services Administration Board, which oversees the Sault Ste. Marie Paramedic Services.
Despite the supply chain issues during the pandemic that led to some higher costs for manufacturers like Rowland, the company has seen growth in recent years as some paramedic services have expanded their fleets for community paramedicine programs.
Babony said the effects of the tariffs could expand past the manufacturing of emergency vehicles to other items it produces, some of which require steel.
"We're already preparing our U.S. customers that are purchasing these blocks or poles that support cardiac monitors on a stretcher, telling them that tariffs have been put into place and prices have gone up to account for that," he said.
Those price increases negatively affect the competitive advantage the company has with U.S. purchasers due to the relatively weak Canadian dollar, Babony said.
In an open letter, Demers-Crestline Canada president Steve Hoffrogge said rising costs and supply chain disruptions during the pandemic already increased prices on emergency vehicles.
"Now, proposed retaliatory tariffs threaten to drive costs even higher, making it even more challenging to replace aging ambulances and maintain reliable patient care," said Hoffrogge in the letter.
The company is actively lobbying the U.S. government to offer an exemption for emergency vehicle from tariffs. Hoffrogge said retaliatory tariffs by Canada on ambulances, chassis and other essential components could significantly raise the cost for new ambulances.
"We recognize that these additional costs would place a significant financial strain on our customers — especially at a time when fleet ages are reaching historic highs. Adding tariffs to the cost of these life-saving vehicles would only exacerbate the situation, limiting your ability to serve communities and respond to emergencies effectively," said Hoffrogge.