TITLE I
THE STATE AND ITS GOVERNMENT

CHAPTER 21-P
DEPARTMENT OF SAFETY

General Provisions

Section 21-P:12-b

    21-P:12-b Bureau of Emergency Medical Services. –
I. There is established within the division of fire standards and training and emergency medical services a bureau of emergency medical services under the supervision of a classified chief of the bureau of emergency medical services reporting to the division director.
II. The bureau chief, under the supervision of the director of the division of fire standards and training and emergency medical services, shall:
(a) Be responsible for the day-to-day operations of the bureau of emergency medical services.
(b) Plan and provide operational resources as available, for the coordination of emergency medical and adult and pediatric trauma services recommended throughout the state with and between private units and local, county, and state agencies. Such a plan shall include provisions for response to mass casualty incidents. The plan shall be tested by exercises from time to time in coordination with other appropriate local and state agencies.
(c) Carry out public information and education relative to the availability and appropriate use of the emergency medical and trauma services system.
(d) Facilitate the establishment and maintenance of a communications network that addresses citizen access to the emergency medical and trauma services system and communications among emergency medical service units, health care facilities, and other local, county, and state agencies involved in the care or transportation of persons in need of appropriate medical attention.
(e) Provide for the training and for the written and practical testing of emergency medical care providers, in accordance with RSA 153-A:11.
(f) License emergency medical care providers, emergency medical service units, emergency medical service instructor/coordinators, emergency medical service training agencies, emergency medical services dispatchers, and emergency medical service vehicles, including wheelchair vans for hire.
(g) Establish a data collection and analysis capability that provides for the evaluation of the emergency medical and trauma services system and for modifications to the system based on identified gaps and shortfalls in the delivery of emergency medical and trauma services. Any emergency medical and trauma services data or analysis collected or maintained by the division may be provided to any state or federal agency or to any third party entity contracted to work on behalf of a federal or state entity, provided that such use does not violate the confidentiality of recipients of emergency medical care. The provisions of RSA 153-A:35 shall be followed with regard to other uses of this data for research and evaluation purposes, and for protecting the confidentiality of data in those uses. All analyses shall be public documents, provided that the identity of the recipients of emergency medical care are protected from disclosure either directly or indirectly.
(h) Carry out investigations as provided under RSA 153-A:14.
(i) Provide administrative support, within the limits of available funding, to the coordinating board, emergency medical services medical control board, trauma medical review committee, and the councils.
(j) With the approval of the commissioner, be authorized to employ part-time instructors, evaluators, and practical skill examination aides for the purpose of delivering training and written and practical examinations.
(k) Prepare budgets and grant requests for funds needed to maintain an effective emergency medical and trauma services system, and plan initiatives related to improving the general health of the public.
(l) With the approval of the commissioner, accept in the name of the state any and all donations, fees for tuition, rents, services, and any and all money and grants from any governmental unit, public agency, institution, person, firm, or corporation and receive, utilize, expend, and dispose of such funds subject to budgetary provisions, consistent with the rules of the department of safety and the purposes or conditions of the donation or grant.
(m) With the approval of the commissioner, establish fees to be collected for tuition, services, and licenses. The commissioner may for good cause waive any fees charged under this subparagraph and may authorize tuition reimbursement from the fire standards and training and emergency medical services fund.
(n) Develop and implement a plan for individuals possessing a New Hampshire emergency services license to provide non-emergency services at social or sporting events. Such plan shall be developed and implemented by July 1, 2013. The plan shall be distributed to the commissioner of safety, the director of the division of fire standards and training and emergency medical services, and the chair of the emergency medical and trauma services coordination board.
(o) Notwithstanding paragraph II(g), the division is hereby authorized to execute all documents, and perform all other acts necessary to participate in the National Emergency Medical Services Information System or any similar data collection, sharing, or analysis system, provided that the data provided to any such system does not violate the confidentiality of recipients of emergency medical care. The commissioner shall review and approve any such authorization prior to sharing any data.
III. The receipt of a donation or grant under subparagraph II(l) shall be noted in the annual report of the department of safety, which will also identify the nature of the donation or grant and the conditions of the donation or grant, if any. Any moneys received by the division pursuant to subparagraph II(l) shall be deposited in the state treasury to the account of the department of safety and shall not lapse. In addition, the division may receive, hold, and use gifts, bequests, and devises either outright or in trust for purposes consistent with this chapter.

Source. 1999, 345:3. 2001, 91:3. 2004, 171:26. 2011, 169:1, eff. Jan. 1, 2012. 2012, 216:1, eff. June 13, 2012. 2018, 144:1, eff. July 29, 2018. 2022, 169:1, 2, eff. Aug. 6, 2022.