Dennis Apuan

Rep. Apuan to Bring More Emergency Personnel
Jobs to Colorado

(DENVER) — A bill that will create over 100 good, high-paying jobs in the Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) industry and reduce the number of emergency personnel vacancies throughout Colorado passed unanimously out of the Health and Human Services Committee today on a 9-0 vote.

House Bill 1275 allows the Department of Public Health and Environment to offer provisional certifications for up to 90 days to out-of-state paramedics. The legislation is expected to create over 100 new jobs immediately. Due to long wait times to process out-of-state candidates, many vacancies remain unfilled. The new legislation will create more EMT jobs, while at the same time increasing EMT readiness in rural parts of the state.“Not only will this bill create more than 100 jobs in much needed areas of the state, it will also cut down response time for people in emergencies – we will save lives, fast,” said bill sponsor Rep. Dennis Apuan (D-Colorado Springs). “We need to get people to work and we need to make sure every single Coloradan is safe and protected.”Currently, it can take up to 12 weeks once an application has been submitted to the state for obtaining the Colorado Paramedic Certification due to backlogs they face with FBI background checks.
“Jobs are difficult to find in the current economy. Surprisingly, when there are openings in the EMS industry, they can be difficult to fill due to the long wait time to process out-of-state applications for a Colorado State Paramedic Certification, and many candidates change their minds,” said David Patterson, Division General Manger at Rural/Metro Ambulance. “Offering a provisional certification to an out of state Paramedic who can show that they have current certification in another state and/or National Registry certification would allow Colorado EMS agencies, such as ours, to fill open positions that normally take months to finalize.”Under HB 1275, applicants must meet all Colorado statutory and regulatory requirements for EMT Certification. It is a cash funded certification program, where EMT applicants will pay a fee for the Provisional Certification.
The legislation comes out of the Joint Select Committee on Job Creation and Economic Growth Bill and has bi-partisan support. It is a cash funded certification program. EMT applicants will pay a fee to cover the cost of the Provisional Certification.
Rep. Apuan continued, “Colorado has spent decades building a vast EMT infrastructure whose long-term viability depends on this legislation to keep it operational. There are 15,000 EMT professionals in Colorado employed by over 200 organizations statewide. Emergency Medical Services are essential to public safety along with police and fire services, as well as serving as a vital health care safety net for communities. It’s frankly unnecessary that these highly qualified emergency personnel cannot serve the people of Colorado because of needless bureaucratic delay. This legislation will help the first-responder system to run efficiently.”