Transition course deadline will not be extended

By JOHN HULTGREN
Kentucky EMS Connection

FRANKFORT — The June 30 deadline for successfully completing an EMT-Transition Course will stand.

Dr. Rice C. Leach, the commissioner of the Cabinet for Health Services, says he will not extend the deadline past the end of this month.

An extension was requested June 1 by the Kentucky Firefighters Association, which says that 1400 Kentucky certified EMTs have yet to complete a transition course.

State regulation requires all EMT-Basics who were trained prior to the 1994 D.O.T EMT-Basic curriculum to complete a state approved EMT-Transition Course by the end of this month. Paramedics are not required to complete an EMT transition course but have been encouraged to do so by the Kentucky Ambulance Providers Association.

Leach says that EMTs who do not successfully complete a transition course by the end of this month can still continue to work as an EMT until their current EMT certification expires. Once their current certification expires, they can only restore their EMT certification by completing an approved refresher course and successfully completing the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians' standard written and practical skills examinations.

Leach stated he decided not to extend the deadline because the regulation has been on the books for almost 36 months, and 75 percent of Kentucky's EMTs have met the requirements.

Printed below is the letter sent by Leach to Duane Suttles, EMS Committee chairperson for the KFA.

June 16, 1999

Dear Mr. Suttles:

Thank you for your letter of June 1, 1999 requesting an extension of the regulation that requires an EMT transition course to maintain a certification. This regulation has been on the books since July 6, 1996 with a deadline for compliance of June 30, 1999, a time period of almost 36 months in which to complete the course.

I should point out that although those EMTs who have not completed a transition by June 30th will not be eligible for recertification, they can still continue to work as an EMT until their current certification expires. If after that certificate expires, they desire to restore their EMT certification, they can come back through the "re-entry" process which involves taking an approved refresher course and successfully completing the standard written and practical skills examinations through the National Registry of EMTs.

I can understand the plight of 1,400 EMTs who have yet to meet this requirement. At the same time, I understand that 75 percent of the state's EMTs have met the requirement specified in the regulation. While I can understand this will cause some people problems, I am deciding not to extend the deadline any further.

Sincerely,

/s/ Rice C. Leach, M.D.
Commissioner

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