Bill Text: NJ A4511 | 2020-2021 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Allows for immediate transport of persons by local law enforcement officers under certain circumstances.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2020-09-17 - Received in the Senate, Referred to Senate Law and Public Safety Committee [A4511 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2020-A4511-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman SHAVONDA E. SUMTER
District 35 (Bergen and Passaic)
SYNOPSIS
Allows for immediate transport of persons by local law enforcement officers under certain circumstances.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning certain county and municipal law enforcement officers 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. Notwithstanding any other law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, a county or municipal law enforcement officer shall provide a person with direct transportation to the nearest hospital if:
(1) the person is suffering from an injury requiring immediate medical assistance;
(2) an emergency medical transportation vehicle is delayed or unavailable; and
(3) there is a hospital with the necessary emergency facilities within a reasonable distance.
b. The Attorney General, in consultation with the Commissioner of Health, shall promulgate guidelines to effectuate the provisions of this section. The guidelines shall include, but not be limited to:
(1) identifying the types of injuries requiring immediate transport by a county or municipal law enforcement officer when emergency medical transportation is delayed or unavailable;
(2) a listing of hospitals in each county to which a law enforcement officer may transport an injured person, including accredited trauma centers;
(3) procedures for the transportation of injured persons suspected of committing a crime or offense;
(4) safety precautions and best practices for avoiding exposure to blood-borne pathogens and communicable diseases; and
(5) decontamination of vehicles in which law enforcement officers have transported an injured person.
c. As used in this section:
"Accredited trauma center" means a trauma center designated as a Level One or Level Two trauma center under the provisions of P.L.2013, c.233 (C.26:2KK-1 et seq.) and the regulations adopted pursuant thereto.
"Emergency medical transportation" means the prehospital transportation of an ill or injured patient by a dedicated emergency medical service vehicle or helicopter response unit.
"Hospital" means a general acute care hospital licensed pursuant to P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et seq.).
2. This act shall take effect on the first day of the fourth month next following enactment, but the Attorney General and the Commissioner of Health may take anticipatory administrative action in advance as shall be necessary for the implementation of this act.
STATEMENT
This bill requires a county or municipal law enforcement officer to provide a person with immediate transportation to the nearest hospital if:
· the person is suffering from an injury requiring immediate medical assistance;
· an emergency medical transportation vehicle is delayed or unavailable; and
· there is a hospital with the necessary emergency facilities within a reasonable distance.
The bill provides that the Attorney General, in consultation with the Commissioner of Health, is to promulgate guidelines to effectuate the provisions of the bill. The guidelines are required to include, but not be limited to:
· identifying the types of injuries requiring immediate transport by a county or municipal law enforcement officer when emergency medical transportation is delayed or unavailable;
· a listing of appropriate health care facilities in each county to which a law enforcement officer may transport an injured person, including accredited trauma centers;
· procedures for transporting injured persons suspected of committing a crime or offense;
· safety precautions and best practices for avoiding exposure to blood-borne pathogens and communicable diseases; and
· decontamination of vehicles in which law enforcement officers have transported an injured person.
The bill defines "accredited trauma center" to mean a trauma center designated as a Level One or Level Two trauma center under the provisions of P.L.2013, c.233 (C.26:2KK-1 et seq.) and the regulations adopted pursuant thereto. In addition, the bill defines "emergency medical transportation" to mean the prehospital transportation of an ill or injured patient by a dedicated emergency medical service vehicle or helicopter response unit.
It is the sponsor's view that providing law enforcement officers with the power to rapidly transport a critically ill person to the nearest appropriate hospital will shorten the time between injury and hospital care. The sponsor notes that the ability to quickly provide advanced hospital care is particularly important for persons suffering from traumatic injury. The transportation of injured persons to the hospital by law enforcement officers, also known as "scoop and run," has not only saved lives in the communities where it has been implemented, but also improved the relationship between law enforcement officers and the communities that they serve.
