ARIZONA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Fifty-fifth Legislature Second Regular Session
	House: HHS DP 7-2-0-0

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HB 2431: emergency medical services; patient transport

Sponsor: Representative Shah, LD 24

Caucus & COW

Overview

Requires an emergency medical care technician (EMT) to contact the physician providing administrative medical direction or in the hospital's emergency department if emergency medical services transportation is not provided to a patient. Outlines requirements and prohibitions relating to the EMT's communication with the patient.

History

An EMT means an individual who has been certified by the Arizona Department of Health Services (DHS) as an EMT, advanced emergency EMT, an EMT I-99 or a paramedic (A.R.S. § 36-2201).  

The Medical Director of the Statewide Emergency Medical Services and Trauma System, the Emergency Medical Services Council and the Medical Direction Commission must recommend to the Director of DHS certain standards and criteria pertaining to the quality of emergency patient care, including:

1) Statewide standardized training, certification and recertification standards for all classifications of EMT's;

2) A standardized and validated testing procedure for all classifications of EMTs;

3) Medical standards for certification and recertification of training programs for all classifications of EMT's;

4) Standards and mechanisms for monitoring and ongoing evaluation of performance levels of all classifications of EMT's;

5) Objective criteria and mechanisms for decertification of all classifications of EMT's; and

6) Standards for ambulance service and medical transportation that give consideration to the differences between urban, rural and wilderness areas (A.R.S. § 2204).

Provisions

1. Directs an EMT to contact the physician providing administrative medical direction or a physician in the base hospital's emergency department consistent with local protocols and practice guidelines if emergency medical services transportation is not provided to a patient. (Sec. 1)

2. Prohibits an EMT from:

a) Providing a patient with a medical diagnosis and using that medical diagnosis as the basis for counseling the patient to decline emergency medical services transportation; or

b) Counseling a patient to decline emergency medical services transportation, except as part of a specific alternate destination or treat-and-refer program that includes quality management and comprehensive medical direction oversight. (Sec. 1)

3. Requires an EMT to explain to a patient the risks and consequences to the patient's health of not being transported. (Sec. 1)

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7.                   HB 2431

8. Initials AG/JB        Page 0 Caucus & COW

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