Committee consolidates EMS rules, reduces continuing-education hours to align with neighboring states
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Summary
Lawmakers approved consolidation of several EMS chapters into a single rule and reduced continuing-education hour requirements for emergency medical personnel to match contiguous-state averages per last session's law.
The House Health and Welfare Committee approved a consolidated Emergency Medical Services (EMS) chapter that combines multiple EMS rule chapters into a single, more accessible chapter and adjusts continuing-education hour requirements to comply with last session's House Bill 704.
Jared Larson told the committee the consolidated chapter incorporates language from several prior chapters and reduces continuing-education hours to match the average of contiguous states, as required by statute. Under the consolidation, continuing education was reduced as follows: emergency medical responders from 8 to 5 hours, emergency medical technicians from 16 to 12 hours, advanced emergency technicians from 27 to 20 hours and paramedics from 36 to 30 hours.
Wayne Denny, EMS Bureau Chief, was present as the subject-matter expert. Larson said the consolidation is intended to remove barriers to practice for EMS personnel relocating to Idaho and to make the rules easier to access in a single PDF.
Committee members moved and carried a series of repeals for the individual EMS chapters that were incorporated into the consolidated docket; motions were approved by voice vote.
Ending: The committee approved the consolidated EMS chapter and associated repeals; the department noted the change will ease licensure portability and lower continuing-education obligations to align with neighboring states.
