House committee hears EMS office update and lays over package of bills on rural ambulance funding, workforce and rates

Chair Backer convened the House Health Finance and Policy Committee on Monday, Feb. 24, and the panel received an update from Director Ferguson of the newly created Minnesota Office of Emergency Medical Services and laid over several EMS-related bills for possible inclusion in the house omnibus package.

The committee heard from Director Ferguson, director of the Office of Emergency Medical Services, who described the office’s transition from the former EMS regulatory board into a state agency effective Jan. 1 and outlined priorities including a new state EMS strategic plan, workforce supports and two small rule-making projects. “Really to date, my goal, as the director for the office has been focusing on minimizing disruption and ensuring a smooth transition and trying to build upon the efficient quality service that had really strengthened in the EMS RB over the course of the last 2 to 3 years,” Ferguson said.

The update identified recent funding and pilots enacted in last session’s EMS omnibus bill: a $24,000,000 aid program distributed on Dec. 26 under a formula that apportioned 40% by square mileage, 40% by response volume with a sliding scale to favor smaller services, and 20% as an across-the-board allocation; and a $6,000,000 alternate EMS response pilot (the “sprint medic” pilot) split between Otter Tail and Grant counties and St. Louis County. Ferguson said the Otter Tail project has an executed GRAMA contract and is preparing to begin operations; the St. Louis County application remained pending at the time of the hearing. He told the committee that the aid funds must be spent or encumbered by Dec. 30, 2025, and that a report back to the legislature is expected in calendar year 2026.

Why it matters: Committee members and testifiers said rural ambulance services are increasingly operating at a loss as payer mix shifts toward Medicare and Medicaid and volunteer staffing declines. Committee members framed the bills on the agenda as a coordinated response to sustain coverage across Greater Minnesota and to increase recruitment into the EMS pipeline.

Bills and testimony

House…