Southern West Virginia News

Washington, D.C. – Yesterday, Congresswoman Carol Miller (R-WV) joined Representatives Mike Carey (R-OH), Lloyd Doggett (D-TX), Pat Ryan (D-NY), and Debbie Dingell (D-MI) in introducing the bipartisan Improving Access to Emergency Medical Services for Seniors Act. The bill would allow seniors on Medicare to receive at-home emergency medical services to treat minor medical incidents.

“Emergency Medical Services (EMS) providers are at the frontline of delivering care and transportation in rural America. In West Virginia, many patients live hours from a hospital and must consistently rely on EMS for treatment. Our EMS personnel are equipped to provide care to patients that may not be in a dire medical situation, rather than spend precious time and resources on transporting non-emergency patients to a hospital emergency department. This commonsense legislation builds upon the Treatment-in-Place Model to provide timely care to our rural patients and empower EMS providers, and I will continue to work to improve access to quality health care for patients in West Virginia and across the U.S.,” said Congresswoman Miller.

“Not every patient is best served by an emergency room visit. In fact, for many seniors, a trip to the hospital can mean long wait times, increased costs and potentially life-threatening complications. We’re proud to lead this bill to give our seniors access to the highest caliber of care,” said Congressman Carey.

The bill has received support from several organizations including the National Rural Health Association, International Association of Fire Chiefs, International Association of Firefighters, American Ambulance Association, Congressional Fire Service Institute, National Association of Towns and Townships and the National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians.

"We greatly appreciate the leadership of Representatives Mike Carey, Lloyd Doggett, Carol Miller, Debbie Dingell and Pat Ryan in laying the foundation for future Medicare reimbursement of vital ambulance services provided at the scene of a patient in need of medical care but doesn't require transport to a healthcare facility. The Improving Access to Emergency Ambulance Services Act will establish a pilot project that will demonstrate the financial and medical benefits to the Medicare program of reimbursing for treatment in place by paramedics and emergency medical technicians," said Randy Strozyk, President of the American Ambulance Association.

"EMS is an integral part of our nation’s healthcare system and has been proven effective in the health continuum. EMS Practitioners are now providing medical care in a variety of settings. Our role has become much broader than ambulance transport. NAEMT has long advocated for providing EMS agencies with flexibility through federal and state reimbursement of Treatment-in-Place (TIP). We applaud Rep. Mike Carey, Rep. Lloyd Doggett, Rep. Carol Miller, Rep. Pat Ryan and Rep. Debbie Dingell for their leadership in introducing this act," said Susan Bailey MSEM NRP President NAEMT

“EMS is a fundamental core service that fire departments provide in their communities," IAFF General President Edward A Kelly said "Fire fighters are among most skilled experienced pre-hospital emergency care providers nation it is long past time we reimburse them full range care they give ill injured Updating Medicare’s reimbursement policies common-sense way drive innovation improve experiences during emergencies applauds Reps Carey Doggett Miller Ryan Dingell their bipartisan developing urge answer call bring into 21st century"

Background:

Treatment-in-place options for emergency medical services reduce costs increase convenience protect seniors from potentially life-threatening infections Adults aged 65 older account nearly 20 percent all ER visits This population contributes backlog waiting rooms even when might not have issue requiring inpatient treatment In 2021 study patients who received at-home had lower risk readmission by 26 percent lower risk long-term admission compared those received

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