AMBULANCE AVAILABILITY; COUNTY POP.                                                       S.B. 929:

                                                                                             SUMMARY AS ENACTED

Senate Bill 929 (as enacted)                                                  PUBLIC ACT 398 of 2018

Sponsor:  Senator Tom Casperson

Senate Committee:  Health Policy

House Committee:  Health Policy

Date Completed:  1-29-19

CONTENT

The bill amended Part 209 (Emergency Medical Services) of the Public Health Code to permit an ambulance operation whose primary service area is in a county with a population of 10,000 or less, with fewer than seven people per square mile, to operate at a reduced or increased level of licensure, if certain conditions are met.

Under Part 209, an ambulance operation license generally must state the highest level of life support the ambulance operation is licensed to provide. An ambulance operation must not provide life support at a level that exceeds its license and available licensed personnel.

The bill permits a limited ambulance operation whose primary service area is in a county with a population of 10,000 or less and whose primary service area has a population density of fewer than seven people per square mile to have an ambulance available at less than the limited level of licensure if both of the following conditions are met:

-- The medical control authority under which the ambulance operation operates authorizes the lesser availability.

-- The ambulance operation has in place local medical control authority protocols approved by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS).

Additionally, the bill allows a basic ambulance operation whose primary service area meets the criteria described above to operate at a limited ambulance operation level of licensure when staffed with an advanced emergency medical technician if all of the following are met:

-- The basic ambulance is equipped at the greater licensure level.

-- The medical control authority under which the ambulance operation operates authorizes the conditional increased level of licensure.

-- The basic ambulance operation has DHHS-approved local medical control authority protocols in place.

(The Code defines "medical control authority" as an organization designated by the DHHS as the control for emergency medical services for a particular geographic region. "Protocol" means a patient care standard, standing orders, policy, or procedure for providing emergency medical services that is established by a medical control authority and approved by the DHHS.)

The bill took effect on December 19, 2018.

MCL 333.20921a                                                      Legislative Analyst:  Tyler VanHuyse

FISCAL IMPACT

The bill will have no fiscal impact on State or local government.

                                                                                   Fiscal Analyst:  Ellyn Ackerman

This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan Senate staff for use by the Senate in its deliberations and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.