Ryan Ferris
In September 2019, Ryan Ferris opened his new emergency medical services company, now called Garnet Health. Six months later, the business nearly flatlined. Why?
Its customer base virtually disappeared.
Garnet's ambulances and medical crews are licensed and equipped like those of any EMS rescue squad in Vermont, but they don't respond to 911 calls. Instead, they transport patients from one medical facility to another throughout New England and northern New York, provided those patients start or finish their trips in Vermont.
"When the pandemic hit, the hospitals didn't move patients unless it was absolutely necessary," explained Ferris, Garnet's cofounder, president and CEO. "In the EMS industry, you don't make money unless you have billable services, and billable services means patients on board."