This bill enacts new provisions related to the transfer of patients from ground ambulance providers to hospitals in Louisiana, establishing the Ambulance Patient Offload Delay Collaborative within the Louisiana Department of Health. The collaborative aims to address significant delays in offloading patients into hospital emergency departments, which can disrupt the emergency medical services (EMS) system and increase healthcare costs. The legislation recognizes the multifaceted causes of these delays, including high demand on emergency departments and hospital staffing challenges, and emphasizes the need for collaboration between ambulance providers and hospitals to develop effective solutions.

The collaborative will be responsible for analyzing the issue of ambulance patient offload delays, collecting data, and developing guidelines and performance measures to track hospitals that exceed industry standards for offload times. It will also explore best practices from other states and propose communication formats to facilitate collaboration between ambulance services and hospital administrators. The collaborative is required to submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the House and Senate committees on health and welfare by February 1, 2025, with the option to continue meeting and providing annual updates thereafter. Additionally, the Department of Health is authorized to promulgate rules to implement the provisions of this bill.