Advocates tell committee EMS licensure compact would expand workforce and speed cross‑state deployments

Supporters of H4119 told the Joint Committee on Public Health that joining the interstate Emergency Medical Services (EMS) licensure compact would give Massachusetts a fast, low‑cost tool to expand its ambulance workforce and speed clinically credentialed deployments across state lines. Witnesses including Action Ambulance leadership and the executive director of the interstate EMS commission said the compact would not reduce Massachusetts’ training or oversight standards but would allow qualified EMS clinicians from compact states to begin work in Massachusetts immediately once affiliated with a local agency. Mike Woronka, a veteran paramedic and president/CEO of Action Ambulance, described growing workforce strain in Massachusetts, citing Department of Public Health figures he summarized during testimony that roughly half of the state’s certified EMTs and paramedics are actively working on ambulances and that annual license nonrenewals are high. He said local services now rely heavily on mutual aid and that some residents have waited as long as 45 minutes for an ambulance in parts of the state. Woronka and others described the licensing process for out‑of‑state providers as a weeks‑long barrier: credential verification, background checks and waiting periods that can take six to 12 weeks. H4119 would authorize Massachusetts to join the EMS compact, which witnesses said is built on the same national exam and education standards already used in the state and would include real‑time disciplinary data sharing. Donnie Woodyard, executive director of the Interstate Commission for EMS Personnel, said the compact requires affiliation with a Massachusetts agency before a clinician may practice in the state and gives Massachusetts the authority to suspend or revoke compact privileges for individuals in real time. He emphasized that joining would carry no cost to providers or the state office and would improve disaster readiness by enabling immediate clinical deployments during surges. Speakers urged a favorable report so Massachusetts could become the first New England state to join the EMS compact and tap an existing pool of compact clinicians nationwide.