Multnomah County, AMR reach tentative agreement to improve ambulance response times
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – After months of contentious debates between Multnomah County and American Medical Response, the two have finalized a tentative agreement to address long ambulance response times in the area.
The agreement, made public Thursday, involves a 12-month staffing plan that blends their staffing model into three tiers:
Basic Life Support (BLS) ambulances with two EMTs
Advanced Life Support (ALS) ambulances with two paramedics
Hybrid ALS ambulances with one paramedic, one EMT
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“This agreement improves ambulance response times and holds AMR accountable for more ambulances to respond to 911 calls on time. When someone needs an ambulance, every second counts,” Chair Jessica Vega Pederson said.
Multnomah County will also be able to report ambulance response times for monitoring by medical service experts.
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The county had been facing ambulance response time issues due to a nationwide shortage of paramedics. For months, AMR has advocated for temporarily allowing ambulances to be operated by one paramedic and one emergency medical technician (known as the 1-1 model), which was a deviation from the previous requirements for a minimum of two paramedics.
“This announcement is a real win for the citizens of Multnomah County,” Rob McDonald, the regional director for AMR, said. “AMR will now be able to invest in putting more ambulances on the road, supporting our goal to provide the right care at the right time.”
AMR has cited a nationwide shortage of paramedics causing long response times in the county.
Chair Jessica Vega Pederson said in November the two-paramedic requirement was not the reason for the slow response times, but now she hopes changing the model will help speed them up.
“I’ve never personally been opposed to a one paramedic, one EMT model,” she said. “What I have consistently said is that this needs to be done in concert with our EMS team and EMS medical director”
AMR also owes the county $7.1 million in fines for allegedly breaking their contract with poor response times. In the new agreement, if AMR follows the new guidelines, those fines could be waived.
The agreement is expected to be voted upon by the Board at a later date.
In a joint statement, Portland Fire & Rescue Chief Ryan Gillespie and DCA for Public Safety Mike Myers said they are “cautiously optimistic about the new temporary staffing model Multnomah County has negotiated with AMR.”
“For years, we’ve staunchly advocated for the entirety of AMR’s fleet to be staffed by the one paramedic, one EMT model,” they said. “While we would have preferred this compromise to come sooner and become permanent, we believe this is a step in the right direction.”
The majority of the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners received the agreement before a briefing Thursday morning. Commissioner Sharon Meieran also shared the following statement, in part, ahead of the briefing:
“Almost a year and a half ago, in the midst of a national paramedic shortage, our ambulance service was facing call volumes and acuity they had never seen before. They asked the County to be allowed to temporarily change staffing in order to respond to the desperate need for more ambulances. Their request was, unbelievably, denied.
…As an emergency physician, I know that two paramedics are not necessary to respond for most emergencies. And so I pushed back.
…What I watched unfold over the past year has been as egregious as it has been unfathomable. The lives at risk and the harm caused because the Chair as she dug in her heels and failed to act are a stain on the County that can’t be washed away.
…I’m glad there finally is an agreement. But that doesn’t erase the year and a half of people calling 911 and not getting an ambulance. Of level zeros and the pressure this put on our first responders. Of people being thrown into the backs of police cars and buses and private vehicles and fire trucks because no ambulance was available to serve them even though the Chair could have changed this with a stroke of the pen.”
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