Subcommittee approves substitute to exempt EMS providers from seat-belt rules while treating patients

Delegate Dolores McQuinn presented a substitute for House Bill 230, incorporating HB233, to exempt certain emergency medical services personnel from the state safety-belt requirement while they are working inside the patient compartment of an emergency vehicle.

"The EMS providers often must attend to patients in the back of a moving vehicle, reach equipment quickly, and support life-saving measures that can require movement throughout the patient compartment," McQuinn said, explaining the substitute’s purpose to give providers flexibility while they deliver care.

Multiple EMS organizations testified in support. Ed Rhodes, representing the Virginia Association of Rescue Squads, told the committee the current code requires personnel to be belted even in the patient compartment, which hampers care. "They need to be able to move around in order to maintain patient care, patient reassessment, and be able to take care of that patient so they don't leave this world strapped to a stretcher," Rhodes said. Annie Nagel, president of the Virginia Association of First Responders, and other witnesses echoed that providers should be restrained when possible but must be able to unbuckle to deliver critical interventions.

Supporters said the change balances provider safety and patient care and addresses potential liability for providers who unbuckle while treating patients. No organized opposition was recorded during the hearing. The substitute passed 7–0 and will be heard by the full Transportation Committee.

The substitute’s language creates a limited exemption tied to the patient-care function inside ambulances; the transcript does not record the final statutory text or implementation guidelines, and it does not list any required documentation, training, or reporting obligations for providers who unbuckle while treating patients.