Grand theft ambulance: The crime we’re letting happen
An ambulance is stolen in the U.S. once every 2 weeks … and we are to blame!
In December 2023, I wrote the article, “Respond in 8 minutes — Gone in 60 seconds,” a headline born of frustration, based on a rising number of ambulance thefts that, at the time, seemed both absurd and increasingly common. I had hoped that naming the problem might nudge the system toward solving it. After all, how could something so costly, dangerous and preventable not trigger action?
Eight hundred words can’t capture every gasp and head-nod, but they can transmit the shockwave Danielle Thomas (COO, Lifeline Ambulance, California) and Carly Strong (COO, Riggs Ambulance, California) unleashed at the 2025 American Ambulance Association Annual Conference.
At the 2025 American Ambulance Association Annual Conference, Royal Ambulance founder Steve Grau delivered a powerful reminder that leadership doesn’t start in a boardroom or budget meeting; it starts in the mirror.
For many of us in EMS, the term “crazy busy” is often thrown around like a rite of passage. It’s shorthand for a culture of overdrive: another shift, another code, another unfunded mandate, another denied claim. But what if “crazy busy” isn’t just a schedule problem — it’s a warning sign?
Named one of Forbes’ Top Futurists, Heather E. McGowan has advised Fortune 500 boards, high-growth start-ups, universities and governments on how to adapt “at the speed of possibility.” A two-time bestselling author (“The adaptation advantage” and “The empathy advantage”), she specializes in translating big, fast-moving trends (e.g., technological disruption, demographic shifts, AI augmentation) into practical strategies leaders can act on today.
As heat rises during summer months, so does the risk of heatstroke. Taylor Titan Rapid Cooling Bags provide a critical tool for First Responders to combat dangerous body temperatures. These fluid-impervious bags, filled with ice and cold water, provide fast, crucial cooling, saving lives during emergency transport.
Developed by Taylor Healthcare in partnership with Phoenix Fire Department, the Titan Rapid Cooling Bag delivers groundbreaking advancements for rapidly reducing elevated body temperatures over 104.5 degrees Fahrenheit. With 15-20 minutes in the bag, filled with ice and cold water, body temperatures drop 3 degrees, lowering 8x faster than traditional methods.
“In emergency medicine, seconds matter—and the Titan Rapid Cooling Bag is a game-changer. Designed for speed, portability, and performance, it empowers First Responders to deliver fast, effective treatment for heat-related illness in the most demanding environments. At Life-Assist, we’re proud to offer solutions that help save lives and support our partners on the front lines of care,” said Andy Selby, Vice President of Sales “We are proud to be the exclusive distributor of Titan Rapid Cooling Bags, ensuring that emergency personnel have access to this innovative tool that will allow better response to victims of extreme heat.”
Taylor Titan Rapid Cooling Bag Benefits:
Fluid Impervious with Dual-Welded Seams, Ultra Strong PVC, and Reinforced Zippers
Strong Lift Weight for Transport with Added Ice (575 lbs)
6-Handle Design Provides Enhanced Stability during Lifting and Transfer
First Responders, including Paramedic, EMT, EMS, and Fire Departments now have seamless access to this essential product through Life-Assist.
For more information about the Taylor Titan Rapid Cooling Bag, please visit www.life-assist.com/taylorCoolingBag or contact marketing@life-assist.com
Through an exclusive partnership, Life-Assist delivers PSTrax’s cutting-edge inventory management system to EMS agencies, helping them gain real-time visibility, control costs, and ensure critical supply readiness. This alliance marks a significant advancement in emergency services procurement, allowing agencies to maximize efficiency while maintaining full control over their inventory.
By integrating their systems, agencies can seamlessly connect Life-Assist’s extensive product catalog with the PSTrax Procurement feature within its Supplies Module, eliminating inefficiencies in purchasing and supply chain management. With direct purchase order (PO) generation, automated inventory updates, and enhanced financial oversight, agencies can maintain operational readiness with improved efficiency and accuracy.
“First Responders should never face challenges with procurement or risk supply shortages,” said Scott Bergeron, CEO of PSTrax. “This collaboration brings together two industry leaders with a shared vision—helping agencies run more effectively by making sure their teams have the right resources, exactly when needed. By integrating Life-Assist’s comprehensive catalog into PSTrax, we’re offering a seamless, automated solution that improves accountability and enhances readiness and response.”
Bryan Holliday, CEO of Life-Assist, added, “Our partnership with PSTrax helps our EMS customers maintain ideal supply levels, streamline ordering, and enhance operational efficiency. Together, we are simplifying procurement for First Responders. Allowing them more time to focus on what they do best, providing care and support for our communities.”
Procurement benefits at a glance:
Product Catalog Integration ─ Easily link new products to your existing inventory in the Supplies module for a fully synced system.
Flagged Item Alerts ─ Quickly add critical or low-stock items to your shopping cart directly from supply levels.
Enhanced Purchase Order Management ─ Gain complete control over ship-to contacts, shipping details, and order quantities while generating electronic POs effortlessly.
Centralized Oversight ─ Manage purchase orders across multiple vendors on a single dashboard with bulk editing and item-specific status updates.
Streamlined Restocking ─ Efficiently match delivered supplies with POs for easy receiving and restocking in the Supplies module.
Real-Time Transparency: Access live updates to monitor purchases and ensure optimal financial oversight.
Media Contact Emily Nichols enichols@ambulance.org
American Ambulance Association to Recognize 2025 Award Winners
Washington, DC—The American Ambulance Association (AAA) is proud to honor the 2025 award recipients at the upcoming President’s Reception, taking place on June 23, 2025, during the AAA Annual Conference & Trade Show at the Central Bank Center in Lexington, Kentucky. These distinguished honorees embody the dedication, innovation, and leadership crucial to advancing mobile healthcare across the nation.
Affiliate of the Year
Health Management Associates (HMA): For their continued collaboration and role in advancing meaningful analysis of EMS data, with a special thanks to Zach Gaumer.
Stryker: For their enduring support and commitment to the Stars of Life EMS recognition program and the AAA Annual Conference & Trade Show.
Partnership of the Year
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS): For their efforts to gain deeper insight into the complexities and challenges of EMS costs and revenue.
South Carolina EMS Association (SCEMSA): For their development of several innovative state-level programs and their ongoing efforts to strengthen alignment between state and federal advocacy nationwide.
Distinguished Service Award
Kim Godden, AMBUPAC Chair & former AAA Board Member: For her relentless service and commitment to advancing EMS advocacy.
President’s Award
Julie Rose, AAA Strategic Planning Committee Chair & former AAA Treasurer: For her unwavering commitment to the AAA, demonstrated through her exceptional leadership and financial expertise.
Randy Strozyk, AAA President (2023–2024): For his work in fostering collaboration and unity within the mobile healthcare community.
Robert L. Forbuss Lifetime Achievement Award
David Werfel: For his lasting impact on the AAA and the EMS profession, built on decades of expert counsel.
EMS Visionary Award
Asbel Montes, Ground Ambulance Patient and Billing Advisory Committee Chair: For his innovative leadership in EMS policy, highlighted by his service to the AAA board and committees.
Special Recognition Award
Samantha Hilker, AAA Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives: For her invaluable leadership of the EMS Next mentorship and recognition program, coupled with her strategic, data-driven support of AAA advocacy.
Justin Grohs: For his diligent work in advancing EMS advocacy, not only in his home state of Montana, but also at the national level.
Board Service Award
Paul Main: For his longstanding dedication and exceptional service to the AAA board and membership.
Lifetime Membership
Jim Finger, Jimmy Johnson, Jim McPartlon, and Jim O’Connor: For their decades of steadfast commitment to mobile healthcare and meaningful contributions to the advancement of the EMS community.
About the American Ambulance Association
The American Ambulance Association safeguards the future of mobile healthcare through advocacy, thought leadership, and education. AAA advances sustainable EMS policy, empowering its members to serve their communities with high-quality on-demand healthcare. For more than 40 years, AAA has proudly represented those who care for people first.
On Thursday, March 6, the Medicare Payment Advisory Committee (MedPAC) will hold the first of several Commission discussions related to the statutorily mandated report to review ground ambulance payment policy in light of the Ground Ambulance Data Collection System. The AAA has already met with MedPAC staff and will also provide a summary of the meeting. Given that CMS will likely publish the second data collection period report at the end of 2025, we anticipate that the MedPAC report will be published in its June 2026 report.
The MedPAC process involves a series of public meetings during which staff present materials to Commissioners. The Commissioners often ask questions and express opinions during this process. It is important to recognize that the Chair of MedPAC seeks to ensure consensus as much as possible in the final report. Thus, many of the comments made during public meetings are not included in final reports.
The AAA will continue its work with MedPAC as it works to develop the report.
Contact:
Samantha Hilker
Sr. Director of Strategic Initiatives
shilker@ambulance.org
American Ambulance Association Announces 2025 EMSNext Winners
Washington, D.C. – The American Ambulance Association (AAA) is proud to recognize its third annual class of EMSNext honorees. EMSNext is a groundbreaking initiative that spotlights emerging emergency medical services (EMS) leaders and offers them leadership development, structured mentorship, and collaborative networking opportunities throughout the year. These 16 outstanding individuals from 10 states join a growing network of 54 EMSNext program alumni poised to assume prominent leadership roles in the profession.
“We are incredibly proud to welcome the 2025 class of EMSNext,” said AAA President Jamie Pafford-Gresham. “Their passion, dedication, and leadership inspire us all and promise a brighter, more resilient future for EMS. Together, they will stand at the forefront of mobile healthcare excellence for patients across the nation—now and in the future.”
Oluwafemi “Daniel” Adebisi | Commercial Project Manager, Falck USA | California
HeatherZimmerman | CFO & HR Manager, Ambulance Service of Manchester, LLC & Aetna Ambulance Service, Inc.| Connecticut
2025 EMSNext honorees receive complimentary registration to the American Ambulance Association Annual Conference & Trade Show in Lexington, KY June 22-24. They will be recognized at the conference’s opening keynote address on Sunday, June 22, 2025, in addition to participating in a collaborative workshop focused on solving the biggest challenges in out-of-hospital care.
“The EMSNext program is an investment in the future of our profession,” adds Pafford-Gresham. “By fostering leadership and innovation, we are strengthening EMS from the ground up, ensuring our communities continue to receive the highest quality emergency medical care.”
About the American Ambulance Association
The American Ambulance Association safeguards the future of mobile healthcare through advocacy, thought leadership, and education. AAA advances sustainable EMS policy, empowering its members to serve their communities with high-quality on-demand healthcare. For more than 40 years, AAA has proudly represented those who care for people first.
On Saturday, December 21, the American Relief Act of 2025 (H.R. 10545) became law and thereby averted a partial federal government shutdown. Of critical importance to ground ambulance service organizations, H.R. 10545 also extends the temporary Medicare ambulance add-on payments of 2% urban, 3% rural and 22.6% super rural through March 31, 2025. In addition, the new law wipes clean the PAYGO scorecard preventing a potential 4% cut in Medicare reimbursement for ground ambulance and other Medicare services.
The House of Representatives passed by a vote of 366 to 34 the Continuing Resolution (H.R. 10545) to extend funding for the federal government just hours before reaching the previous funding deadline of midnight on December 20th. The Senate then passed H.R. 10545 by a vote of 85 to 11 late that evening. The CR funds the federal government primarily at current funding levels through March 14, 2025.
The negotiations on the American Relief Act were extremely tense with a more robust initial legislative package, which would have extended the Medicare ambulance add-ons for two years, being replaced with a slimmer bill with fewer and shorter health care provisions. The extension of ground ambulance service payments ended up being just one of twenty-five provisions in the final 118-page Continuing Resolution, which was originally over 1,600 pages.
The AAA greatly appreciates the advocacy of our champions and supporters on Capitol Hill to ensure that the temporary ambulance payments extension was included in the final CR. We also want to thank our AAA members for reaching out to their members of Congress to request their help with the add-on payments. We will continue to push for a longer extension of the ambulance payments at percentages higher than the current levels upon the expiration of the CR.
