Legal Issues
The legal issues topic contains news and information about legal issues affecting EMS personnel, agencies or departments. Find the latest news from personnel misconduct, to disciplinary and harassment cases, to malpractice lawsuits, as well as advice to prevent legal action with EMS training, documentation and management.
This EMS One-Stop international edition features Steinar Olsen, director for EMS and national preparedness in the Norwegian Directorate of Health
After a Connecticut EMT abducted a colleague twice, calls intensify for background checks and systemic hiring reforms in EMS
As you begin your EMS journey, remember: the calls are real, the people are counting on you, and your training is just the beginning
Nearly 60% of leaders cited documentation as a critical concern impacting billing, compliance and patient care, according to a report by the PWW Advisory Group and AIMHI
The man who fatally stabbed FDNY EMS Lt. Alison Russo outside her Queens EMS station
A department review found paramedics and EMTs followed recommended chest pain procedures in just 13.2% of cases
MEDIC leaders say the planned training facility at Central Piedmont’s Levine campus is vital to address space shortages and improve cross-agency coordination
Lawmakers advanced a bill that would increase penalties for obstructing police, firefighters and EMTs, raising the charge to a first-degree misdemeanor
A Phoenix family filed a wrongful death lawsuit alleging firefighters declined to transport a 2-year-old to the hospital after a seizure
The wrongful death suit claims logging companies engaged in risky subcontracting practices and failed to vet operators, leading to the 2021 crash that killed a young firefighter/EMT
A woman is suing former EMT along with his parents and American Medical Response, claiming the ambulance company failed to vet his criminal past
Officials say Lauren Wilson posed as a paramedic, treated over 100 patients without certification and used forged documents to get hired
It’s easy for fire and EMS departments to poorly serve this growing demographic, but training can improve that
What public safety can learn from the Titan submersible disaster
Years after a Duke Life Flight helicopter crash killed four people, a wrongful death lawsuit cited engine issues Airbus and Safran allegedly knew about
Stretcher fall underscores the importance of foundational skills after alleged mishap in New Jersey
The San Jose captain is accused of stealing drugs from a fire station and faces multiple charges, as an audit reveals widespread tampering across city firehouses
Relatives of James Foster Jr. filed a federal lawsuit alleging wrongful death and medical malpractice after a Sioux City paramedic injected him with the wrong drug, leading to his death
EMS Captain Alison Russo-Elling, a 9/11 first responder nearing retirement, was attacked near her Queens station while on a food break
Inspiring ways to recognize providers’ contributions, educate the community and recruit the next generation
Despite video and eyewitness accounts placing him at the scene near Captain Alison Russo’s station, Zisopoulos testified he was asleep during the fatal stabbing
With two more key exits, including the fire chief, Gouldsboro seeks new leadership to steady its embattled ambulance service amid past fraud and recent firings
Prosecutors say the man accused of killing FDNY Capt. Alison Russo deliberately ambushed the 61-year-old EMS veteran outside her Queens stationhouse
Fire and EMS leaders can serve as a much-needed constant amid the chaos
You’ve got the requisite emergency response training, but do you have the knowledge to survive a lawsuit?
The man accused of killing Capt. Alison Russo in an unprovoked 2022 attack has been deemed mentally competent, allowing the criminal case to proceed
Acadian Ambulance is seeking to dismiss a class action lawsuit over a 2024 data breach affecting 2.9 million people, arguing plaintiffs haven’t shown actual harm from the leak of sensitive information
Despite CMS’s comprehensive cost findings, MedPAC’s selective data edits paint a distorted picture — risking the financial future of thousands of ambulance services
Hayword authorities say the patient had methamphetamine in his system when midazolam was administered during an in-custody incident
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