Conn. firefighter/paramedics’ ALS restriction lifted at university campus

STORRS, Conn. — Licensed firefighter/paramedics at the University of Connecticut’s Storrs campus can now provide advanced life support when responding to medical emergencies.

The Supplemental First Responder Mobile Intensive Care-Paramedic Program, launched July 1, ended a decades-long restriction that limited the care they could provide, FOX 61 reported.

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Although some UConn firefighters were licensed paramedics, they had been limited to providing basic life support in Storrs. They could perform paramedic-level care only while working at UConn Health in Farmington.

UConn Fire Chief Chris Renshaw said a longstanding agreement with Windham Hospital had prevented firefighter/paramedics from providing advanced care in Storrs.

Capt. Tony Ruggiero said the restriction sometimes limited the care they could provide.

“I would be stuck in that juxtaposition of: Do I do what the patient needs and make decisions for that patient? Or do I risk losing my license and my livelihood and risk going to jail just because of a law?” Ruggiero said.

UConn fire officials said the Storrs station responded to about 30 advanced-care calls in July, with more expected when students return for the fall semester.

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