OXFORD – Selectmen agreed Thursday to write off about $17,000 in bad debts for ambulance service.

The town had considered using a law firm that specializes in collections to recoup at least a portion of the unpaid debt. Oxford would receive about 50 percent of any collections made by the firm.

But the mood was different Thursday. A majority of residents at the meeting argued against trying to recoup the money from the 57 unpaid accounts, saying the town would just be billing people who can’t pay anyway.

Oxford currently has a contract with Medical Reimbursement Services to handle all ambulance billing.

“These are stale claims. We’d be better off writing them off,” said resident Adrien Giroux.

Town Treasurer Sharon Jackson said the money represents the balance due after all insurances have processed the claim. All of the debts are between six months to a year old.

“So it should be written off,” she said.

Selectman Mike Thompson made a motion to have the town continue with its present method of billing and “end all efforts to go after anybody else.”

The motion passed unanimously.

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