Idaho Code § 46-910

§ 46-910.

agency minimum standards. (1) Each ambulance service, air medical service and nontransport service shall be licensed under this chapter based on the level of licensed personnel it utilizes, transport capability and self-declared geographic coverage area and shall meet the following standards:

(a) Personnel during transport or transfer - There shall be at least two (2) crew members on each patient transport or transfer, with the crew member delivering patient care being, at a minimum, a licensed emergency medical technician (EMT) or a licensed emergency medical responder (EMR) with a valid ambulance certification issued by the division.

(b) Dispatch - Each licensed EMS agency shall have a twenty-four (24) hour dispatch arrangement and shall respond to calls on a twenty-four (24) hour basis.

(c) Agency inspections and licensing - The division shall conduct inspections at least annually related to agency licensing or shall contract to have the inspections carried out. Each agency shall have a current state license in order to operate.

(d) Ambulance service minimum standards waiver - The controlling authority providing ambulance services may petition the division for waiver of the ambulance standards of subsection (2) of this section if compliance with these standards would cause undue hardship on the community being served, or would result in abandonment of ambulance services.

(e) Nontransport service minimum standards waiver - The controlling authority providing nontransport services may petition the division for waiver of the twenty-four (24) hour response requirement of this section if the petition demonstrates that the community, setting, industrial site or event is not populated on a twenty-four (24) hour basis or does not exist on a three hundred sixty-five (365) day per year basis or if compliance with these standards would cause undue hardship on the community being served or would result in abandonment of nontransport services.

(f) Supervision - A licensed physician shall supervise the medical activities provided by licensed personnel affiliated with the licensed agency, including but not limited to establishing standing orders and protocols, reviewing performance of licensed personnel, approving methods for licensed personnel to receive instructions for patient care via radio, telephone or in person, and other oversight as provided in regulation.

(2) Applicants must submit the following information with their applications and agree to meet the following requirements as a condition of licensure:

(a) A declaration of anticipated applicant agency costs and revenues; a statement of projected changes in response time; and a narrative describing projected clinical benefits to patients resulting from licensure using methods defined in applicable regulations concerning such matters on an application provided by the division; and

(b) Collect and report data to the division upon receiving a license using a data collection system that is validated as compliant by the national emergency medical services information system technical assistance center in accordance with applicable regulation.

(3) The division will provide notice of any such application to all cities, counties and other units of local government that have any geographic coverage area in common with the applicant in accordance with applicable regulations. Such notice will include a summary of the applicant data supplied to the division. Any other division use of the cost and revenue data supplied by applicants is limited exclusively to informational purposes.

(4) If the division denies an application for any reason, then such decision may be appealed to the office of administrative hearings within forty-two (42) days of the date of the issuance of the denial at the request of the applicant whose request for a license was denied.

(a) The office of administrative hearings shall, within twenty-eight (28) days of receipt of the request, review the full record regarding the application and convene a public hearing regarding the appeal. After the public hearing, the hearing officer shall submit a written recommendation to the division and to the applicant requesting review. The recommendation by the hearing officer either to affirm or reverse the division’s decision shall be based on the full record regarding the application, including this chapter and the regulations and standards established under this chapter. The recommendation shall be in writing and accompanied by a reasoned opinion.

(b) Within twenty-eight (28) days following the issuance of the hearing officer’s written recommendation, the division shall either affirm or reverse its initial decision.

(c) If, upon reconsideration of a decision to deny an application, the division:

(i) Reverses its initial decision and approves the application, then there shall be no further appeal; or

(ii) Affirms its initial decision denying the application, then the applicant may appeal as set forth in chapter 52, title 67 , Idaho Code.