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1. What is 911?

9-1-1 is an emergency telephone number that provides expedient access to Law Enforcement, Emergency Medical Services and Fire Departments.

2. When do I call 911?

Call 911 to report a crime, fire or medical condition. If there is a situation that you may be unsure but need immediate response, dial 911.

3. When do I not call 911?

Do not call 911 if the following occur

• When your power or cable goes out
• When you want weather conditions
• When you want to know about road conditions
• When you want to know about school closings
• When you are looking for directions or a specific road
• When you need household or automobile repairs

4. Why do you ask all those questions?

When you call to report an emergency to 911, you may think the Telecommunicator is asking you too many questions. Once we have obtained the address of the emergency, the telephone number you are calling from and the nature of the emergency, we can send someone to help you.

Depending on the type of emergency, the Telecommunicator may need to keep you on the phone to provide further instructions or information until help arrives. The information we gather is helpful to the field units responding to you.

When reporting an emergency try to remain calm so that the Telecommunicator can understand what you are reporting and provide you with the help you need.

5. What if I need directions or an address or phone number?

Remember that we are 9-1-1 not 4-1-1. We receive calls every day from someone wanting us to look up addresses, directions and telephone numbers. This information is for emergency personnel only. We will not give this information out.

6. What if I do not know my 911 address?

If you do not know your 9-1-1 address and would like to find the information, call or go in person to the 911 Addressing office.

7. What if I need a new 911 address?

If you are building a home in Cherokee County, you will be issued a 9-1-1 address when you receive your building permit. If you are using a contractor, make sure to ask him for your address when he obtains your permit. It is your responsibility to notify 911 addressing if any information changes including your address, telephone number or ownership.

If this information is not current in our system, this could delay response to your emergency by a few seconds or minutes. When you are having an emergency, seconds count.

8. What about school closings or power and cable outages?

Listen to the local radio stations, WKRK or WCVP, for weather and road conditions and reported school closings. Please do not call 9-1-1 about your power or cable being off. This causes delays and ties up emergency lines for those who need help.

We have the same phone number for the power and cable companies that you do.

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1. How much does ambulance transport cost?

$400 to $850 is the fee for ambulance transport depending on the level of care provided. $12.50 per mile is the charge for out of county transports (out of county transports must be cleared with Medical Control at our sponsoring hospital.)

2. Will I receive a bill for ambulance transport?

The billing office will bill Medicare, Medicaid and third-party insurance companies.

3. What services does Medicare usually cover?

he following list some of the more common situations, which suggest transportation by ambulance may be medically indicated:

• The patient was transported in an emergency situation (e.g. as a result of an accident, injury or acute illness)
• Emergency measures or treatment were required (e.g. drugs, CPR, cardiac monitor, etc.)
• The patient needed to be restrained to prevent injury to himself or others (e.g. patient was combative, patient was convulsive, etc.
• The patient was unconscious (was unable to respond to external stimuli), this does not include patients who are comatose or in a vegetative state, with no specific reason for transport
• The patient was in shock
• The patient required IV fluids to maintain adequate blood pressure (e.g. dehydration, bleeding, cardiac arrhythmias, etc.) or an access line to administer medication(s)
• The patient required oxygen in route to his destination. However, this is not a covered condition if oxygen equipment has been prescribed as part of therapy or a treatment regimen and that equipment was available to the patient
• The patient required immobilization to prevent further injury of a fracture or possible fracture
• The patient sustained an acute stroke or myocardial infarction (this does not include patients who have a history of a stroke or myocardial infarction and are able to be transported by other means because no acute medical condition exists)
• The patient was experiencing symptoms indicative of a possible myocardial infarction or stroke
• The patient was experiencing a severe hemorrhage
• The patient was bed confined before and after the ambulance trip (bed confined due to old age does not qualify). Document the patient’s condition in your files to include the reason why the patient was bed confined
• The patient could be moved only by stretcher and any other method of transportation would result in injury or would be detrimental to the patient’s health

This is not an all-inclusive list of covered conditions. If the patient is transported for any non-emergency condition, the medical need for the services must be clearly documented.

4. What services does Medicare not cover?

Medicare does not cover the following services:

• To or from the doctor’s office or a physician-directed clinic. (Exception: If in the course of transporting a patient to a hospital, the ambulance stops at a physician’s office because of the patient’s dire need for professional attention and immediately thereafter the ambulance takes the patient to the hospital, payment can be made for the entire trip)
• Transfer from one residence to another. (A nursing home is considered to be a place of residence)
• Transfer from a hospital which has appropriate facilities for treatment to another hospital
• Transportation of a deceased patient to a funeral home
• Transportation to a non approved dialysis facility for routine maintenance dialysis
• Waiting time charges – the charge an ambulance company makes for time spent while waiting for the patient
• The patient refuses to be transported. If, after responding to a call from a patient, no transportation service is rendered, the supplier should not bill Medicare for the unloaded mileage to the patient’s location and the ambulance crew’s assessment of the patient as an ambulance transportation service, since no ambulance service was rendered
• Oral or self administered drugs
• Assessing the patient’s condition or taking vital signs
• Charges made for services not rendered, or bills submitted for the express purpose of obtaining payment from Medicare for known non-covered services constitutes fraudulent billing practices. Claims submitted for denial purposes used for billing a supplemental insurer would not be considered fraudulent billing

5. In what cases are ambulance services not covered?

In most cases ambulance services are not covered if

• The patient is ambulatory
• The patient is not admitted as a hospital inpatient (except in accident and emergency cases)
• A routine trip to return the patient to his or her home is generally not covered
• The patient is transported from home or a nursing home to the hospital outpatient department, and returned, for treatment that could have been performed elsewhere (e.g. patient’s home or doctor’s office)

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1. How do I get a copy of a fire report for my vehicle or home?

Fire Reports are the responsibility of the Fire District Fire Chief. Contact the Fire Chief of your district for a Fire Report for your property.

2. Who do I contact for Illegal Burning?

The North Carolina Division of Air Quality is the authority having jurisdiction over all illegal burning materials.

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1. What is GIS?

A Geographic Information System (GIS), is any system that captures, stores, analyzes, manages, and presents data that is linked to location. In the simplest terms, GIS is the merging of cartography and database technology. Geographic Information Systems are used in the following areas:

• Cartography
• Emergency management
• Geography
• Land surveying
• Localized search engines
• Navigation
• Photogrammetry
• Remote sensing
• Urban planning

2. Where can I find more information about GIS?

A good place to start is to visit GIS.com. GIS.com is a portal to GIS information on the web and was created by ESRI, a GIS software developer. The site is intended to educate anyone interested in geographic technology on the value that technology brings to his or her day-to-day activities.

3. What types of maps are available?

Cherokee County offers a free Interactive Map Viewer that allows users to see maps of Cherokee County, N.C. showing property lines, streets, addresses, photography, and other information. It is a very user friendly program designed for the novice user. 

4. Are digital data sets available for the public?

Yes, GIS data is now available to the public free of charge from the GIS Data Center page. The GIS Data Center is a collection of data layers from our GIS data library, which are downloadable in shapefile or file geodatabase format.

5. What projection is the data in?

The data is in the following projections:

• Coordinate System: North Carolina State Plane
• Projection: Lambert Conformal Conic
• Datum: NAD83
• Units: Feet

6. Where is the GIS Office located?

View the location and contact information for the office.

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1. Can Environmental Health investigate general complaints concerning improper disposal of tires, roofing shingles, garbage, debris, and pests involving private residences?

Environmental Health does not investigate complaints of this nature at private residences. However, we may refer these complaints to other jurisdictions if applicable.

2. How can I have my home tested for radon gas or find assistance with radon questions?

Visit the North Carolina Radon website to answer your radon related questions.

3. Does the Health Department regulate tanning salons or beauty salons?

No. Tanning and beauty salons are regulated by the NC Division of Radiation Protection (under NCDENR). You can call them at 919-571-4141.

4. Where do I file a complaint about dumping in streams?

You can contact the North Carolina Division of Water Quality (Asheville Regional Office phone is 828-296-4500) or contact the Cherokee County Environmental Health Department at 828-835-3853 and we will refer your complaint to the DWQ regional office.

5. What do I do to clean up mildew/mold issues in my house?

Visit the Environmental Protection Agency's website to see how to clean up mildew or mold issues in your house.

6. How do I file a complaint about a restaurant or other establishment regulated under FLI?

Contact the Cherokee County Environmental Health Department where the call will be referred to the designated specialist for investigation of the complaint.

7. What do I do if I think I have foodborne illness?

Contact your physician or other health care provider and your local health department. Additional information concerning food borne outbreaks can be accessed on the CDC website.

8. Are there some foods that I can serve that do not require a food handling permit?

Yes, non hazardous foods such as popcorn, dip or scoop ice cream, candied apples, boiled peanuts, and cotton candy are not regulated. If you have a certain food item that you are not sure about call FLI to see if a permit would be required. The North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services website addresses the selling of home canned goods, non-hazardous baked goods, and other foods not regulated under the Health Department: