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Sponsor says new law would let EMS be paid for non-transport community care
Summary
Senate Bill 220 would authorize community paramedicine programs and require private insurers and Medicaid to reimburse approved services such as chronic-disease management, safety checks and post-discharge follow-up, the sponsor said at a committee hearing.
Senator Manchester presented sponsor testimony on Senate Bill 220, saying the bill establishes a statewide framework for community paramedicine programs that would allow EMS personnel to provide non-emergency, community-based care under medical supervision and be reimbursed for those services. She said programs could cover chronic-disease management, medication-adherence support, fall prevention, home safety inspections, health evaluations, telehealth monitoring, referrals to community services and post-surgical care coordination.
Manchester told the committee the measure is permissive — EMS organizations would opt in to run approved programs — and that the bill requires insurers, including Medicaid, to cover services delivered under approved community paramedicine programs "just as they would for other care provided by EMTs and paramedics." She said the design intends to reduce avoidable emergency responses and hospital readmissions by shifting resources toward prevention and follow-up.
Senator Liston and other committee members asked whether the current reimbursement model only pays when EMS transports a patient to the hospital; Manchester confirmed that SB220 fills that gap by enabling payment for in-place or home-based services without transport. The committee completed a first hearing on the bill without taking a vote.
