An ambulance’s flashing lights are a welcome sight in a medical emergency.
But a different light — a warning one — has been flashing in Southern California, which like the rest of the nation is struggling with a shortage of paramedics and emergency medical technicians that’s had a ripple effect on public safety and patient care.
The shortage delays how long it takes an ambulance to get to a scene, and sometimes, ambulances arrive with no paramedic, Riverside County Supervisor Kevin Jeffries wrote in a newsletter to constituents.
When that happens, a fire engine paramedic rides with the patient to the hospital, taking that fire engine out of service until the paramedic gets back, Jeffries added.
American Medical Response, Riverside County’s emergency medical transport provider — which also is active in Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties — cited the paramedic/EMT shortage in a discussion of why it failed to meet response time benchmarks.
That failure led Riverside County officials this month to deny a one-year extension of AMR’s contract, which runs through mid-2026.
Besides Riverside County, Los Angeles, Orange and San Bernardino counties reported dealing with a shortage of paramedics and EMTs, who offer emergency care but have less advanced training than paramedics.
“We do have a shortage of both EMTs and paramedics,” Orange County EMS Medical Director Carl Shultz said via email. “We really don’t have much input into this situation, as there is not much we can do to expedite a remedy of the situation.”
In an emailed statement, LA County’s Department of Health Services acknowledged the shortage, but said it is “actively recruiting highly talented paramedics and EMTs to serve our county through incentives such as competitive benefits package and commitment to career development.”
Tracey Martinez, a spokesperson for the San Bernardino County Fire Protection District, said via email that the district has “thought outside of…
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