Bill Text: NJ A3988 | 2010-2011 | Regular Session | Amended

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Bill Title: Establishes mutual aid assistance request protocols for 9-1-1 ambulance dispatchers.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-06-29 - Assembly Floor Amendment Passed (Quijano) [A3988 Detail]

Download: New_Jersey-2010-A3988-Amended.html

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[First Reprint]

ASSEMBLY, No. 3988

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

214th LEGISLATURE

 

INTRODUCED MAY 9, 2011

 

 

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman  ANNETTE QUIJANO

District 20 (Union)

 

 

 

 

SYNOPSIS

     Establishes mutual aid assistance request protocols for 9-1-1 ambulance dispatchers.

 

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

     As amended by the General Assembly on June 29, 2011.

  

An Act concerning emergency response and supplementing Title 26 of the Revised Statutes.

 

     Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

 

     1.    a.  It shall be a standard operating procedure for 9-1-1 dispatchers to call for mutual aid assistance whenever a basic life support ambulance provider fails ¹[to respond to an emergency response call within 10 minutes; provided, however, nothing] to inform the dispatcher within 10 minutes that the ambulance provider is actively responding. A dispatcher shall issue at lease one additional call approximately five minutes following the initial call to ensure that the ambulance provider has received the call.  Nothing¹ herein shall be construed to preclude the adoption of a standard operating procedure that mandates a dispatcher to issue a call for mutual aid assistance within a time frame of less than 10 minutes ¹or issue more than one additional call¹ when a basic life support ambulance provider fails to respond to an emergency response call.

     b.    Upon any such failure to respond, the dispatcher shall issue a mutual aid assistance call to a different basic life support ambulance provider, but shall also re-alert the service provider initially called. If the service provider initially called affirms that it is en route or is otherwise actively responding to the emergency response call, the ¹service provider shall advise the¹ dispatcher ¹[may] whether or not to¹ cancel the request for mutual aid assistance.

     c.     ¹[A] If a¹ provider ¹[who]¹ fails to respond to an emergency response call and, as a consequence, mutual aid assistance is required to service the emergency, ¹that provider¹ shall ¹[not be called by a 9-1-1 dispatcher to respond to an emergency unless] be concurrently dispatched with a mutual aid basic life support ambulance provider on all emergency calls until¹:

     (1)   the provider, through prior notice, affirms that it has sufficient staffing available to respond to any request for emergency assistance within 10 minutes; or

     (2)   ¹[a mutual aid assistance provider is called concurrently with the provider who failed to respond to the previous call.  The mutual aid assistance provider shall respond to the call, unless directed by the 9-1-1 dispatcher to do otherwise] the provider responds to an emergency call.  If the provider responds to an emergency call, the service provider shall advise the dispatcher whether or not to cancel the request for mutual aid assistance¹.

     ¹[2. The Department of Health and Senior Services shall develop guidelines to effectuate the purposes of this act.]¹

 

     ¹[3.] 2.¹     This act shall take effect on the first day of the third month following enactment.