As Introduced

128th General Assembly
Regular Session
2009-2010
S. B. No. 302


Senator Carey 

Cosponsors: Senators Schaffer, Harris, Seitz, Stewart 

A BILL
To amend sections 4765.07, 4765.43, and 4766.03 and 1
to repeal section 4765.431 of the Revised Code to 2
revise the requirements for staffing ambulances 3
and the priorities for distributing grants for 4
emergency medical services.5


BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:

       Section 1.  That sections 4765.07, 4765.43, and 4766.03 of 6
the Revised Code be amended to read as follows:7

       Sec. 4765.07.  (A) The state board of emergency medical 8
services shall adopt rules under section 4765.11 of the Revised 9
Code to establish and administer a grant program under which 10
grants are distributed according to the following priorities:11

       (1) First priority shall be given to emergency medical 12
service organizations for the training of personnel, for the 13
purchase of equipment and vehicles, and to improve the 14
availability, accessibility, and quality of emergency medical 15
services in this state. In this category, the board shall give 16
priority to grants that fund training and equipping of emergency 17
medical service personnel.18

       (2) Second priority shall be given to entities that conduct 19
research on, test, or evaluate one or more of the following:20

       (a) Procedures governing the performance of emergency medical 21
services in this state;22

       (b) The training of emergency medical service personnel;23

       (c) The staffing of emergency medical service organizations.24

       (3) Third priority shall be given to entities that research 25
the causes, nature, and effects of traumatic injuries, educate the 26
public about injury prevention, and implement, test, and evaluate 27
injury prevention strategies.28

       (3) Third(4) Fourth priority shall be given to entities that 29
research, test, and evaluate procedures that promote the 30
rehabilitation, retraining, and reemployment of adult or pediatric 31
trauma victims and social service support mechanisms for adult or 32
pediatric trauma victims and their families.33

       (4) Fourth(5) Fifth priority shall be given to entities that 34
research, test, and evaluate medical procedures related to adult 35
and pediatric trauma care.36

       (6) For grants distributed for the grant award years 37
occurring not later than the award year ending June 30, 2017, 38
sixth priority shall be given to entities that operate paramedic 39
training programs and are seeking national accreditation of the 40
programs.41

       (B) To be eligible for a grant distributed according to the 42
sixth priority, an applicant for the grant shall meet all of the 43
following conditions:44

       (1) Hold a certificate of accreditation issued by the board 45
under section 4765.17 of the Revised Code to operate a paramedic 46
training program;47

       (2) Be seeking initial national accreditation of the program 48
from an accrediting organization approved by the board;49

       (3) Apply for the national accreditation on or after February 50
25, 2010.51

       (C) The grant program shall be funded from the trauma and 52
emergency medical services grants fund created by section 4513.263 53
of the Revised Code. 54

       Sec. 4765.43.  (A) A person who drives an ambulance that is 55
equipped for emergency medical services, is not required by this 56
chapter to be certified as an emergency medical technician-basic, 57
emergency medical technician-intermediate, or emergency medical 58
technician-paramedic.59

       (B)(1) During each emergency run made by an ambulance that is 60
equipped for emergency medical services and is operated by an 61
emergency medical service organization that does not utilize any 62
volunteer emergency medical service providers or does not 63
substantially utilize those providersDuring each emergency run 64
made by an ambulance that is equipped for emergency medical 65
services, the emergency medical service organization operating the 66
ambulance shall staff the ambulance in accordance with this 67
section.68

       For purposes of determining the applicable staffing 69
requirements, both of the following apply:70

       (1) An emergency run consists of the period during which the 71
ambulance is traveling to the scene of an emergency and the period 72
during which the ambulance is transporting a patient from the 73
scene of the emergency.74

       (2) If an emergency medical service organization utilizes a 75
combination of volunteer and paid first responders, emergency 76
medical service technicians-basic, emergency medical service 77
technicians-intermediate, or emergency medical service 78
technicians-paramedic, the organization is considered to be 79
substantially utilizing volunteers when the paid individuals, 80
taken as a whole, are scheduled for a total of not more than one 81
hundred sixty-eight hours in any week.82

       (B) With respect to the driver of an ambulance during an 83
emergency run, both of the following apply:84

       (1) The driver must be at least eighteen years of age.85

       (2) The driver must hold a certificate issued under section 86
4765.30 of the Revised Code to practice as a first responder, 87
EMT-basic, EMT-I, or paramedic or a fire training certificate 88
issued pursuant to section 4765.55 of the Revised Code to provide 89
services as a firefighter.90

       (C) With respect to the portion of the emergency run during 91
which the ambulance is traveling to the scene of the emergency, 92
the ambulance shall be staffed by at least one EMT-basic, EMT-I, 93
or paramedic. This individual may serve as the driver.94

       (D) With respect to the portion of the emergency run during 95
which a patient is being transported, the ambulance shall be 96
staffed as follows:97

       (1) If the emergency medical service organization utilizes 98
only paid individuals or utilizes volunteers on a basis that does 99
not constitute substantially utilizing volunteers, the ambulance 100
shall be staffed by at least two EMTs-basic, EMTs-I, or 101
paramedics. When an ambulance is so staffed, it may be driven by a 102
person who is not certified as an EMT-basic, EMT-I, or paramedic103
One of these individuals may serve as the driver.104

       (2) During each emergency run made by an ambulance that is 105
equipped for emergency medical services and is operated by anIf 106
the emergency medical service organization that substantially 107
utilizes volunteer emergency medical service providersvolunteers 108
or utilizes only volunteers, the ambulance shall be staffed by at 109
least two EMTs-basic, EMTs-I, or paramedics or by at least one 110
first responder and one EMT-basic, EMT-I, or paramedic. When an 111
ambulance is so staffed, it may be driven by a person who is not 112
certified as a first responder, EMT-basic, EMT-I, or paramedic. If 113
circumstances so require, an ambulance that is staffed by only one 114
first responder and one EMT-basic, EMT-I, or paramedic may be 115
driven by the first responder who is staffing the ambulance with 116
the EMT-basic, EMT-I, or paramedicOne of these individuals may 117
serve as the driver, but if the staffing requirement is being met 118
by utilizing a first responder, the first responder shall serve as 119
the driver.120

       (C) For purposes of division (B) of this section, an 121
emergency medical service organization substantially utilizes 122
volunteer emergency medical service providers if, on any given 123
date, for the six-month period immediately prior to that date, the 124
organization's daily average number of hours during which the 125
organization used only volunteer first responders, volunteer 126
EMTs-basic, volunteer EMTs-I, or volunteer paramedics, or a 127
combination of such volunteers, was fifty per cent or more of the 128
daily average number of hours that the organization made emergency 129
medical services available to the public.130

       Sec. 4766.03.  (A) The Ohio medical transportation board 131
shall adopt rules, in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised 132
Code, implementing the requirements of this chapter. The rules 133
shall include provisions relating to the following:134

       (1) Requirements for an emergency medical service 135
organization to receive a permit for an ambulance or nontransport 136
vehicle;137

       (2) Requirements for an emergency medical service 138
organization to receive a license as a basic life-support, 139
intermediate life-support, advanced life-support, or mobile 140
intensive care unit organization;141

       (3) Requirements for a nonemergency medical service 142
organization to receive a permit for an ambulette vehicle;143

       (4) Requirements for a nonemergency medical service 144
organization to receive a license for an ambulette service;145

       (5) Requirements for an air medical service organization to 146
receive a permit for a rotorcraft air ambulance or fixed wing air 147
ambulance;148

       (6) Requirements for licensure of air medical service 149
organizations;150

       (7) Forms for applications and renewals of licenses and 151
permits;152

       (8) Requirements for record keeping of service responses made 153
by licensed emergency medical service organizations;154

       (9) Fee amounts for licenses and permits, and their renewals;155

       (10) Inspection requirements for licensees' vehicles or 156
aircraft, records, and physical facilities;157

       (11) Fee amounts for inspections of ambulances, ambulettes, 158
rotorcraft air ambulances, fixed wing air ambulances, and 159
nontransport vehicles;160

       (12) Requirements for ambulances and nontransport vehicles 161
used by licensed emergency medical service organizations, for 162
ambulette vehicles used by licensed nonemergency medical service 163
organizations, and for rotorcraft air ambulances or fixed wing air 164
ambulances used by licensed air medical service organizations that 165
specify for each type of vehicle or aircraft the types of 166
equipment that must be carried, the communication systems that 167
must be maintained, and the personnel who must staff the vehicle 168
or aircraft;169

       (13) The level of care each type of emergency medical service 170
organization, nonemergency medical service organization, and air 171
medical service organization is authorized to provide;172

       (14) Eligibility requirements for employment as an ambulette 173
driver, including grounds for disqualification due to the results 174
of a motor vehicle law violation check, chemical test, or criminal 175
records check. The rule may require that an applicant for 176
employment as an ambulette driver provide a set of fingerprints to 177
law enforcement authorities if the applicant comes under final 178
consideration for employment.179

       (15) Any other rules that the board determines necessary for 180
the implementation and enforcement of this chapter.181

       (B) In the rules for ambulances and nontransport vehicles 182
adopted under division (A)(12) of this section, the board may 183
establish requirements that vary according to whether the 184
emergency medical service organization using the vehicles is 185
licensed as a basic life-support, intermediate life-support, 186
advanced life-support, or mobile intensive care unit organization.187

       (C) A mobile intensive care unit that is not dually certified 188
to provide advanced life-support and meets the requirements of the 189
rules adopted under this section is not required to carry 190
immobilization equipment, including board splint kits, traction 191
splints, backboards, backboard straps, cervical immobilization 192
devices, cervical collars, stair chairs, folding cots, or other 193
types of immobilization equipment determined by the board to be 194
unnecessary for mobile intensive care units.195

       A mobile intensive care unit is exempt from the emergency 196
medical technician staffing requirements of division (B) of197
section 4765.43 of the Revised Code when it is staffed by at least 198
one physician or registered nurse and another person, designated 199
by a physician, who holds a valid license or certificate to 200
practice in a health care profession, and when at least one of the 201
persons staffing the mobile intensive care unit is a registered 202
nurse whose training meets or exceeds the training required for a 203
paramedic.204

       Section 2.  That existing sections 4765.07, 4765.43, and 205
4766.03 and section 4765.431 of the Revised Code are hereby 206
repealed.207