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Dispatchers press committee to designate 9‑1‑1 telecommunicators as first responders, citing PTSD and staffing shortages
Summary
Representatives of emergency communications centers, NENA and dispatch unions urged the committee to pass bills recognizing telecommunicators as first responders and to extend internal public‑safety benefits; witnesses said the change would aid recruitment, retention and access to wellness services.
Emergency dispatchers and emergency communications leaders told the Joint Committee on Public Safety and Homeland Security that Massachusetts should recognize 9‑1‑1 telecommunicators as first responders and grant them internal benefits similar to police, firefighters and emergency medical technicians. "We are the first point of contact in every emergency," said Erin Hastings, executive director of the Middlesex Regional Emergency Communications Center. "Passing this bill tells them and tells the public the truth that the dispatchers really are first responders." The bills under consideration — House Bill 2663 and Senate Bill 1761 — would statutorily classify public safety telecommunicators as first responders and make it…
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