The 2024 ambulance medical trips to Barton Hospital in CA from:

Douglas County Area= 658 (Numbers provided by email from Tahoe Douglas Fire)

El Dorado County Area=  2849  (Numbers are online)

 

+/-25000 people in El Dorado County and +/-3000 people on the Nevada side of Lake Tahoe

Using 2024 data, there were 658 ambulance trips from the Nevada side traveling through the casino corridor to reach Barton’s current location in California. In the same year, there were 2,840 ambulance trips originating in El Dorado County and remaining within California to transport patients to Barton Hospital.

If the hospital is relocated to Stateline, Nevada, these 2,840 trips would now need to travel a longer distance and pass through the heavily congested casino corridor—before even accounting for return trips.

This longer route and increased traffic will delay patient access to upgraded care and increase costs for California residents. Additionally, sending more emergency vehicles through an already congested area raises the risk of accidents and threatens public safety.

We must also consider the number of trips made by personal vehicles, which would further strain the corridor.

The primary population center in the region is South Lake Tahoe/El Dorado County—not Douglas County. Based on the 2024 ambulance data and common sense, it is clear that the hospital should remain in California.

​