BILL NUMBER: S6226A
SPONSOR: HINCHEY
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the public health law, in relation to availability of
ambulance services and advanced life support first response service to
store and distribute blood and initiate and administer blood trans-
fusions
 
PURPOSE:
The purpose of this bill is to permit ambulance services and advanced
life support first response service to store and distribute blood and
initiate and administer blood transfusions.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1: amends the public health law to allow for ambulance services
and advanced life support first response service to store and distribute
blood. Distribution and administration of the blood on an ambulance is
limited to only qualified medical and health personnel, such as a regis-
tered nurse. This section also sets forth the standards of care that
ambulance services must adhere to when handling, storing and distribut-
ing the blood.
§ 2: establishes the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
Beginning in 2021, air transport ambulance services became authorized
and began successfully transfusing blood products to emergency patients
to resuscitate them during transport. Despite the success of blood
transfusions provided through air transport ambulance services, motor
vehicle ambulance services remain subject to more onerous regulations
which limit their authority to distribute transfusions to only those
patients being transported between hospitals. Moreover, motor vehicle
ambulance services continue to be prohibited from carrying their own
blood products to administer to patients in hemorrhagic shock. This
legislation permits all ambulance services to provide the same blood
transfusion services to patients as permitted for air transport ambu-
lance services when such ambulance services meet the same standards as
currently set forth in the law. Permitting all ambulances to qualify to
transfuse blood products to patients to resuscitate them during trans-
port will result in more saved lives.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New Bill.
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

Statutes affected:
S6226: 3003-b public health law
S6226A: 3003-b public health law