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Tag: Michigan

Medicare Ambulance Relief Bill introduced in Senate

Written by AAA Staff on . Posted in Advocacy Priorities, Government Affairs, Legislative, Medicare.

Yesterday, Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) and Susan Collins (R-ME) introduced the Protecting Access to Ground Ambulance Medical Services Act of 2021 (S. 2037). Senators Cortez Masto and Collins were joined by Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Bernie Sanders (D-VT) as primary cosponsors and leads on the legislation.

S. 2037 is identical to H.R. 2454 by Representatives Terri Sewell (D-AL), Devin Nunes (R-CA), Peter Welch (D-VT) and Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) and would extend the temporary Medicare ground ambulance increases of 2% urban, 3% rural and the super rural bonus payment for five years. The increases are currently scheduled to expire on December 31, 2022. The five-year extension would allow for the increases to remain in place during the two-year delay on ambulance data collection due to the COVID-19 public health emergency, an analysis of the data by MedPAC and subsequent action by the Congress to reform the Medicare ambulance fee schedule.

The legislation would also help ensure that rural zip codes in large urban counties remain rural following geographical changes under the fee schedule as a result of the 2020 census data. The current definition using rural urban commuting areas (RUCA) in Goldsmith Modification areas would be modified for zip codes with 1,000 people or less per square mile would also be rural. Ground ambulance service providers and suppliers could also petition the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to make the argument that a specific zip code should be rural. It is vital that this provision be implemented before CMS makes changes from the 2020 census data which will likely occur in 2023.

The AAA has been leading the effort on the legislation with the support of the International Association of Fire Chiefs, International Association of Fire Fighters, National Association of EMTs, National Rural Health Association and the National Volunteer Fire Council.

The AAA will be launching a Call to Action shortly requesting AAA members to ask their Senators to cosponsor S. 2037, and reach out to their Representatives to cosponsor H.R. 2454 if they have not already done so.

We greatly appreciate the leadership of Senators Cortez Masto, Collins, Stabenow, Cassidy, Leahy, and Sanders on this vitally important legislation.

Study | Rural hospital closures strain community ambulance services

Written by AAA Staff on . Posted in News, Press.

Research Brief From the University of Michigan on May 25

Rural hospital closures force patients in affected communities to travel longer distances for specialized or emergency care. A new study from the University of Minnesota School of Public Health shows that such closures place similar strain on emergency medical service (EMS) providers trying to get patients to the hospital or another facility as quickly as possible.

The study was led by Associate Professor Sayeh Nikpay and recently published in the journal Academic Emergency Medicine.

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The study found:

  • The average length of ambulance trips for municipal EMS agencies went up 22% in locations of recent rural hospital closures.

  • The average length of ambulance trips for private EMS agencies increased 10% in those areas.

  • Interfacility transfers and non-emergency EMS trips fell by 31% for all agencies.

  • The total number of trips did not change, likely because many agencies are already operating at full capacity and must prioritize emergency calls over transfers and non-emergency transportation after hospitals close.

Read Full Research Brief

40 Under 40: Brian Walls (Huron Valley Ambulance – Ann Arbor, MI)

Written by American Ambulance Association on . Posted in 40 Under 40.

40 Under 40 nominees were selected based on their contributions to the American Ambulance Association, their employer, state ambulance association, other professional associations, and/or the EMS profession.
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Brian Walls
Paramedic Supervisor
Huron Valley Ambulance
Ann Arbor, MI

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LinkedIn
Nominated by: Paul Hood (Huron Valley Ambulance – Ann Arbor, MI)
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Biography:

Brian Walls has worked at Huron Valley Ambulance (HVA) for 15 years working his way up from Wheelchair Van Driver to Paramedic Supervisor. Brian currently serves as a Senior Critical Care Paramedic, part-time Paramedic Supervisor, and holds the roles of Medical Officer and Coordinator for the Washtenaw County Hazmat, Special Pathogens, and Technical Rescue teams at HVA. Through Brian’s responsibilities, he has had both a local and national impact on new protocols and standards for hazmat and special pathogens. Specifically, Brian assists with public health preparedness and acts as an EMS liaison to regional healthcare partners as well as regional and state health departments.

Brian has written hazmat policy, procedures, and the Special Pathogens Response Guidebook for HVA’s special response team that has been adopted by the State of Michigan. Additionally, Brian’s leadership on the Technical Rescue Team has created an invaluable resource to surrounding communities for all aspects of technical rescue response by updating and creating state treatment protocols and medical operations.

A lifelong resident of southern Michigan, Brian graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Public Safety in 2013. Brian is a volunteer firefighter in Milan, Michigan. Brian and his wife recently welcomed their first child, Riley Ann.
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Reason for Nomination:

Brian is an outgoing and personable individual who is well liked and respected by all. Brian wears many hats at HVA which includes functioning as a Senior Critical Care Paramedic, part-time Road Supervisor, and Medical Officer and Coordinator for the Technical Rescue Team and the Hazmat teams. Brian actively works in his various roles to raise the bar in EMS. Brian puts 110% into everything he does and always maintains a positive demeanor and professional attitude. Despite being so busy, Brian is always very caring, compassionate, and thorough while performing all his duties.

Recently, Brian was tasked to prepare and establish a Special Pathogens Response Team, specifically for Ebola patient transfers. Brian researched, attended multiple trainings out of state at the National Ebola Training Education Center (NETEC) and the Center for Domestic Preparedness for Highly Infectious Diseases, and visited fire departments who transported confirmed Ebola patients in 2014.

Brian continued researching for over two years, training with his team several times a month, while obtaining feedback to develop procedures and guidelines for Washtenaw County. This resulted in Brian writing a copyrighted guidebook called, The Special Pathogens Response Guidebook that guides EMS agencies through an entire patient transfer from start to finish. This includes pre-incident planning, donning and doffing, patient transfer, communications, hand off, waste disposal, disinfection, and emergency procedures. In addition to writing the response guidebook for EMS, Brian worked with his team and the local treatment center to create a custom designed Highly Infectious Disease Unit (ambulance) that improves the safety of his crew while in Hazmat suits. This custom-built ambulance improves ventilation and temperature control, thus increasing the time crew members can be in Hazmat suits. The specially designed ambulance also minimizes the amount of hazardous material waste that needs to be collected by our local treatment center and reduces the amount of time it takes to disinfect and place the ambulance back in service.

Finally, Brian reached out to the NETEC to schedule a site assessment for EMS, which it had never done before. NETEC used HVA’s Special Pathogens Response Team and Guidebook as a pilot to establish their own site assessment algorithm to help EMS programs with a special pathogens transport around the nation.

Through his hard work and dedication, Brian has expanded HVA’s response area from only transporting in a couple counties of Michigan, to becoming the backup agency to assist all EMS agencies for the entire state of Michigan. Brian continues to work with Michigan state and local health departments in special pathogens response and preparedness.

Brian’s attention to detail and dedication to positively impact policy change are what makes him stand out in EMS.

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View all of the 2020 Mobile Healthcare 40 Under 40 Honorees

CMS Extends Ambulance Enrollment Moratoria

Written by Brian Werfel on . Posted in Medicaid, Medicare.

On July 25, 2015, CMS issued a notice extending the temporary moratorium for enrollment of new ambulance suppliers in the Texas counties of Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery and Waller, as well as in Philadelphia and the surrounding counties of Bucks, Delaware, Montgomery (Pennsylvania), Burlington, Camden and Gloucester (New Jersey). This notice will appear in the Federal Register on July 28, 2015.

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