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Last year was a busy year for EMS at the state capitol with three bills passing the Senate and Assembly and ultimately being signed into law by Governor Scott Walker.  New laws that quickly come to mind include the Tax Refund Interception Program (TRIP) spearheaded by PAAW, as well as laws allowing First Responders to operate as one member of a two-person legal ambulance crew, and cross border mutual aid and coverage agreements.

In July 2015 James Newlun took the helm as the State of Wisconsin EMS Director. 

James oversees the state’s EMS Office, which is truly the nerve center for anything and everything EMS.  There are a lot of moving parts that include review of operation plans, event plan approvals and individual, provider and training center licensing requests and renewals.  Wisconsin is a large and robust statewide EMS delivery system that includes over 800 ambulance services and first responder groups and 22,000 licensed individuals.

Recently, PAAW Executive Director Joe Covelli had the opportunity to discuss with James two memos his office released in January about First Responders and mutual aid and coverage agreements.  He’s also working to streamline the way ambulance operation plan changes are submitted to the state.  Once launched in the coming months, the new approach will avoid delays and just be more efficient.