Pennsylvania House Republican Caucus
Pennsylvania House Republican Caucus
24/07/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 24/07/2024 20:00
York County Fire and EMS Roundtable Offers Solutions to Help First Responders
Jul. 24, 2024
YORK - Representative Seth Grove (R-York) hosted a bipartisan roundtable with members of the York County Delegation to discuss Fire/EMS issues facing the Commonwealth and York County. Present for the roundtable were State Representatives Wendy Fink (R-York), Carol Hill-Evans (D-York), and Kate Klunk (R-York).
"We received valuable feedback on the impact of past legislative initiatives to improve volunteer recruitment for fire departments and funding changes for our EMS providers," Rep. Grove said. "I want to extend my thanks to those who presented at the roundtable. It's important, when the legislature acts, that we follow up to see how it is working. The roundtable provided feedback we can use to author and update legislation as well as share this information with our colleagues around the Commonwealth."
The roundtable started with testimony from Pennsylvania State Fire Commissioner Thomas Cooks, who gave an overview of issues facing first responders in the Commonwealth and what his office has done to help alleviate these issues. Two issues of note shared by the Commissioner included volunteer recruitment and rising operating costs for volunteer Fire Companies. These concerns were later echoed by Fire Chief Daniel Hoff of York Area United Volunteer Fire & Rescue and Deputy Chief Taylor McKeever of Union Fire & Hose Company #1.
Local EMS providers shared an alarming issue with insurance and Medicaid reimbursements. Last year, Pennsylvania increased Medicaid reimbursements, which went into effect in January of this year. Dr. Avram Flamm of WellSpan EMS and Joseph Stevens of First Capital EMS shared they have yet to be paid the increased rate. Joseph Stevens informed legislators, "The bulk of our billing is in excess of 90 days and most of it in excess of 180 [days]." Information like this is important for the legislature to consider when discussing EMS reimbursements in the future.
One surprising theme was the young age at which first responders start recruiting. The final panel focused on recruitment and retention and featured a unique testifier - the Octorara Area School District. The Octorara Area School District has a dedicated Homeland Security & Protective Services Academy. Legislators were eager to learn how to mirror this program in York County, which provides students with on-the-job first responder training and credentialing. The panel also featured testifiers from York College's student-led Department of Campus Safety and the Fire Chief's & Firefighters' Association of York County, which runs the York County Public Safety Training Center (previously known as the York County Fire School).
Rep. Wendy Fink (R-York), a member of the York County delegation who attended the roundtable, said, "I am thankful to our emergency responders and all they do for our communities. The hearing this morning was most informative, and we were able to participate in dialogue to make changes and help spread the word about the needs of our fire companies and EMS workers."
"Very happy to be here and it was very good information. Thank you to all our first responders," shared Rep. Hill-Evans (D-York).
Rep. Klunk (R-York) who also attended the roundtable said, "I would like to thank our first responders who shared their testimony with us. I am looking forward to working with the York delegation to help meet their needs."
The roundtable can be viewed in its entirety here.
Representative Seth Grove
196th District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Media Contact: Charlie O'Neill
717.260.6121
[email protected]
RepGrove.com / Facebook.com/RepSethGrove
"We received valuable feedback on the impact of past legislative initiatives to improve volunteer recruitment for fire departments and funding changes for our EMS providers," Rep. Grove said. "I want to extend my thanks to those who presented at the roundtable. It's important, when the legislature acts, that we follow up to see how it is working. The roundtable provided feedback we can use to author and update legislation as well as share this information with our colleagues around the Commonwealth."
The roundtable started with testimony from Pennsylvania State Fire Commissioner Thomas Cooks, who gave an overview of issues facing first responders in the Commonwealth and what his office has done to help alleviate these issues. Two issues of note shared by the Commissioner included volunteer recruitment and rising operating costs for volunteer Fire Companies. These concerns were later echoed by Fire Chief Daniel Hoff of York Area United Volunteer Fire & Rescue and Deputy Chief Taylor McKeever of Union Fire & Hose Company #1.
Local EMS providers shared an alarming issue with insurance and Medicaid reimbursements. Last year, Pennsylvania increased Medicaid reimbursements, which went into effect in January of this year. Dr. Avram Flamm of WellSpan EMS and Joseph Stevens of First Capital EMS shared they have yet to be paid the increased rate. Joseph Stevens informed legislators, "The bulk of our billing is in excess of 90 days and most of it in excess of 180 [days]." Information like this is important for the legislature to consider when discussing EMS reimbursements in the future.
One surprising theme was the young age at which first responders start recruiting. The final panel focused on recruitment and retention and featured a unique testifier - the Octorara Area School District. The Octorara Area School District has a dedicated Homeland Security & Protective Services Academy. Legislators were eager to learn how to mirror this program in York County, which provides students with on-the-job first responder training and credentialing. The panel also featured testifiers from York College's student-led Department of Campus Safety and the Fire Chief's & Firefighters' Association of York County, which runs the York County Public Safety Training Center (previously known as the York County Fire School).
Rep. Wendy Fink (R-York), a member of the York County delegation who attended the roundtable, said, "I am thankful to our emergency responders and all they do for our communities. The hearing this morning was most informative, and we were able to participate in dialogue to make changes and help spread the word about the needs of our fire companies and EMS workers."
"Very happy to be here and it was very good information. Thank you to all our first responders," shared Rep. Hill-Evans (D-York).
Rep. Klunk (R-York) who also attended the roundtable said, "I would like to thank our first responders who shared their testimony with us. I am looking forward to working with the York delegation to help meet their needs."
The roundtable can be viewed in its entirety here.
Representative Seth Grove
196th District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Media Contact: Charlie O'Neill
717.260.6121
[email protected]
RepGrove.com / Facebook.com/RepSethGrove
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