SENATE HEALTH, HUMAN SERVICES AND SENIOR CITIZENS COMMITTEE

STATEMENT TO

SENATE, No. 2223  

with committee amendments

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

DATED:  NOVEMBER 30, 2023

      The Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee reports favorably and with committee amendments Senate Bill No. 2223.

      As amended by the committee, this bill revises the requirements to receive reimbursement from the “Emergency Medical Technician Training Fund.”

      Currently, any private agency, organization, or entity which is certified by the Commissioner of Health to provide training and testing for volunteer ambulance, first aid and rescue squad personnel who are seeking certification or recertification as an emergency medical technician (EMT) may be reimbursed from the fund for any costs associated with the training and testing of volunteer EMTs that are not otherwise reimbursed.  Volunteer ambulance, first aid and rescue squads are eligible for reimbursement from the fund if the squad does not receive any payment for the provision of emergency medical services, regardless of whether the individual EMTs on the squad are paid by the squad for their services.

      The amended bill would revise these requirements to provide that any agency, organization, or entity may be eligible for reimbursement from the fund for the unreimbursed costs of training and certifying a volunteer EMT, regardless of whether the ambulance, first aid and rescue squad employing or utilizing the services of the volunteer EMT charges for the provision of basic life support services.  The priority for reimbursement from the fund would be:  initial EMT training and certification classes; EMT refresher recertification classes, including Core A, B, and C classes.

      The bill requires that all reimbursements from the fund be promptly paid upon receipt of a qualifying application for reimbursement, which payment is to be made to the agency, organization, or entity that provided training to the volunteer emergency medical technician.

      As amended, the bill provides that the head of each ambulance, first aid and rescue squad will be required to notify the Department of Health whenever an individual who received initial EMT training from an agency, organization, or entity that received reimbursement from the fund for providing the initial EMT training to that individual, ceases to serve as a volunteer EMT within a given three-year certification period.    

      As amended, the bill provides the head of the ambulance, first aid and rescue squad employing or utilizing the services of the EMT with the discretion to determine whether the EMT is a volunteer, provided that the EMT, who would otherwise meet the definition of a “volunteer EMT” under the bill, is not disqualified as a volunteer solely on the basis of working one or more shifts with an ambulance, first aid and rescue squad, for which shift the EMT received compensation.

      A “volunteer EMT” is defined under the bill to mean an EMT who provides basic life support services without receiving any compensation, such as an hourly wage or a salary. 

      As amended, the bill requires the Commissioner of Health to establish a process to seek reimbursement from EMTs that cease to be volunteers for monies paid out of the fund in connection with the EMT’s training, testing, certification, recertification, as appropriate, for that initial three-year certification period.

      As amended and reported by the committee, Senate Bill No. 2223 is identical to Assembly Bill No. 3772, which was also amended and reported by the committee on this date.

COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS:

      The committee amendments revise the bill to clarify that an agency, organization, or entity that provides training and testing to a volunteer emergency medical technicians (EMTs) or EMT candidates is eligible to receive reimbursement from the “Emergency Medical Technician Training Fund” (fund), even if the volunteer EMT is employed or utilized by a paid ambulance, first aid and rescue squad.

      The committee amendments revise the bill to clarify that the head of each ambulance, first aid and rescue squad will notify the Department of Health whenever an individual who received initial EMT training, which training was provided by an agency, organization, or entity that was reimbursed by the fund, ceases to be a volunteer EMT.

      The committee amendments require the Commissioner of Health (commissioner) to establish a process to seek reimbursement from an EMT, who ceases to be a volunteer, for monies paid out of the fund in connection with EMT’s initial three-year certification period.  As introduced, the bill did not expressly require the commissioner to establish a process to seek reimbursement and did not connect this process to a specific certification period.

      The committee amendments provide the head of an ambulance, first aid and rescue squad with the discretion to determine whether an EMT is a volunteer, provided that an EMT is not disqualified as a volunteer solely on the basis of working one or more shifts in which the EMT received compensation.

      The committee amendments revise the bill to remove references to EMT elective continuing education classes, which are no longer covered by the fund.

      The committee amendments make various technical changes addressing punctuation issues and harmonizing terminology used in the bill.