Boston City Council Hears BPHC FY27 Budget, EMS Union Demands Pay Parity

BOSTON — May 21, 2026 — Boston City Council's Ways and Means Committee grills BPHC officials on FY27 budget as EMS union warns of 60 percent pay gap with firefighters. The morning hearing, chaired by District 6 Councilor Ben Weber, covered the Boston Public Health Commission's proposed budget, which reflects a 1.6 percent year-over-year increase after the Office of Budget Management restructured how fringe benefit costs — including a 20 percent health care premium increase — are treated in the appropriation. EMS Chief Jim Hooley reported that citywide priority one median response times dropped from 7.5 to 6.8 minutes in the first half of 2026, a 9.3 percent improvement, while his department responded to more than 141,000 incidents in 2025. BPPA EMS Division President Jason Yutkins testified that a five-year Boston EMT earns "nearly 60 percent less than a firefighter," warning that experienced clinicians "leave because they simply can't afford to stay." Dr. Bisola Ojikutu, BPHC Commissioner, cited a 39 percent decrease in overdose mortality from 2023 to 2024 and announced a $600,000 opioid settlement community-response RFP expected in June, drawn from a roughly $18 million settlement fund budgeted through 2040.