The ambulance industry in NH is facing a ‘dire crisis’ as several factors put strain on service

Health care leaders are describing the growing crisis in New Hampshire’s ambulance system as “dire.” The health care industry has been scrambling to get back on track after COVID-19. Health care leaders warn if the problem isn’t addressed soon, it will only get worse. “So, this is a pretty dire situation and it needs attention at the highest levels immediately,” said Justin Van Etten, executive director of the New Hampshire Ambulance Association. Cost and COVID-19 caused a crisis in the ambulance industry. Behind the scenes, a lot of ambulance service providers have closed. New Hampshire medical services are severely strained, not when you call 911, but when an ambulance is needed to take patients from facility to facility when needed. “Let’s say you’re having a heart attack and you go to your small local rural hospital and you need to get transferred to a big hospital, that’s a very large part of the crisis,” said Van Etten. A study surveyed nearly 150 EMS leaders across the state paints that self-image. About 98% of those surveyed said the state’s EMS system is in urgent need of attention and more than 90% said the health and safety of Granite Staters is already being impacted. “Everything costs more than it did years ago, ambulances the equipment in them have gotten more expensive, wages have gotten more expensive, insurance is more expensive,” Van Etten said. “And by and large we’re getting paid the same, so now you’re losing a lot of money.”The cost of that kind of care and the money made back in return is a huge problem, and because of that, several companies have gone out of business. It poses a recruitment problem too. “Average EMT, according to the state of New Hampshire, makes just over $15 an hour,” Van Etten said. “How do you convince someone to go to school, go through all this learning, if they’re only going to make $15 an hour to save your life.”Increasing the amount insurance companies are required to pay for the services and upping EMS workers pay could all be factors that help alleviate the situation.