Hennepin County delays decision on paramedic staffing ordinance until March 2026

The Hennepin County Health Committee on Oct. 21 approved a request to extend the board'level deadline for a final decision on the suspended staffing provision of Ordinance 9, section 7(1) to March 31, 2026.

Kristen Melstrom, a Hennepin County public health planner and coordinator of the EMS Council, told the committee, "we're here today, with a board request to extend the deadline for the final decision to 03/31/2026 on the suspended staffing section 7 subsection 1 of ordinance 9. That section remains suspended until the end of this calendar year." She said the extension would allow public health and the EMS Council to collect a full year of 2025 performance-measure data before the board votes.

Melstrom described the measures as prehospital-care benchmarks for stroke and trauma patients that the EMS Council approved in November 2024. She said the county wants to compare outcomes while providers operate under the suspended staffing model (a mix of two-paramedic units and one-paramedic/one-EMT units) and to ensure any future requirement aligns with performance data.

Committee members pressed staff on timing. Commissioner Gautel thanked staff for outreach and data work; Commissioner Fernando asked for a sense of when interim results would be available. Melstrom said staff will encourage providers to submit data earlier than usual and expects to meet the March 31, 2026 deadline if the extension is granted.

The committee approved the extension by voice vote. The item will return to the board for a final decision after the county's public health team and EMS Council complete their data collection and analysis.