BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1129
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB
1129 (Burke)
As Amended May 4, 2015
Majority vote
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|Committee |Votes |Ayes |Noes |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|----------------+------+--------------------+--------------------|
|Health |16-0 |Bonta, Maienschein, | |
| | |Burke, Chávez, | |
| | |Chiu, Gomez, | |
| | |Gonzalez, Lackey, | |
| | |Nazarian, | |
| | |Patterson, | |
| | |Ridley-Thomas, | |
| | |Rodriguez, | |
| | |Santiago, Thurmond, | |
| | |Waldron, Wood | |
| | | | |
|----------------+------+--------------------+--------------------|
|Privacy |11-0 |Gatto, Wilk, Baker, | |
| | |Calderon, Chang, | |
| | |Chau, Cooper, | |
| | |Dababneh, Dahle, | |
| | |Gordon, Low | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
AB 1129
Page 2
SUMMARY: Requires an emergency medical services (EMS) provider,
when collecting and submitting data to with a local emergency
medical services agency (LEMSA), to use a system compatible with
California Emergency Medical Services Information System (CEMSIS)
and National Emergency Medical Services Information System
(NEMSIS) standards, as specified, and includes those data elements
that are required by the LEMSA. Prohibits a LEMSA from mandating
that an EMS provider use a specific system to collect and share
this data.
FISCAL EFFECT: None
COMMENTS: According to the author, current law authorizes LEMSAs
to plan, implement, and oversee day-to-day EMS in California. In
order to monitor local EMS providers and services, LEMSAs collect
data from those providers. The author further states, as local
providers have shifted to electronic patient records; the
potential for better analysis of EMS has increased. LEMSAs are
able to provide the data they collect from EMS providers to the
Emergency Medical Services Authority (EMSA) through CEMSIS
compatible software. Although the software and hardware must be
compatible with CEMSIS, there are many different systems in use
and many more available. The author explains that without
guidelines in law, LEMSAs are able to require EMS providers in
their jurisdiction to purchase specific software or hardware for
data collection. Requiring providers that cover multiple counties
or contract with multiple LEMSAs to purchase specific software
and/or hardware can be an unnecessary and costly burden. The
author asserts existing law is silent on whether or not a LEMSA
can require a specific hardware or software provider for EMS
providers in their jurisdiction.
NEMSIS was formed in 2001 by the National Association of State EMS
AB 1129
Page 3
Directors, in conjunction with the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration and the Trauma/EMS Systems program of the Health
Resources and Services Administration's Maternal Child Health
Bureau, in order to develop a national EMS database. NEMSIS is
the national repository that will be used to potentially store EMS
data from every state in the nation, and was developed to help
states collect more standardized elements to allow submission to
the national database.
According to EMSA, CEMSIS is a demonstration project for improving
EMS data analysis across California. CEMSIS offers a secure,
centralized data system for collecting data about individual EMS
requests, patients treated at hospitals, and EMS provider
organizations. EMSA states that at least 14 of California's 33
LEMSAs currently send a variety of local data collections to
CEMSIS on a voluntary basis, and in return, these local agencies
gain access to digital tools for running comprehensive reports on
their own data at no cost.
EMSA states when fully operational with 100% local participation,
it is estimated that CEMSIS will catalogue more than 3 million EMS
events per year. According to EMSA, it will use the data to
develop and coordinate high quality emergency medical care in
California through activities such as healthcare quality programs
that monitor patient care outcomes, agency collaboration across
jurisdictional boundaries, and public health surveillance.
On October 1, 2014, the NEMSIS Technical Advisory Committee
announced that California was the first state to successfully
transmit NEMSIS Version 3 EMS data to the national repository
AB 1129
Page 4
using field and state level software "certified compliant".
NEMSIS Version 3, provides a set of tools that EMS professionals
can use to integrate EMS patient care data with electronic medical
records at hospitals, leading to better patient outcomes and a
smarter system of care.
The California Ambulance Association, the sponsor of this bill,
along with the Los Angeles County Ambulance Association, and
several ambulance providers write in support of this bill.
Supporters state that the growing practice of LEMSAs to direct or
require EMS providers in their region to purchase and employ
specific software vendors undermines the purpose of a universal
standard allowing providers to use whatever system is most
efficient and effective for their area of operation, so long as it
complies with the universal standard. Supporters write that there
are numerous programs and vendors compatible with NEMSIS standards
that can facilitate the exchange of healthcare information between
the state and federal data repositories.
The Emergency Medical Services Administrators Association of
California and the EMS Medical Directors Association of California
are both opposed to this bill, unless it is amended. The
opposition writes that although they are supportive of the concept
of the use of electronic EMS data, they are opposed to the
prohibition of LEMSAs mandating specific data collection systems.
According to the opposition, while it is uncommon for a LEMSA to
require a single system-wide patient care record system, such an
approach could be in the best interest of patients to assure the
transfer and continuity of patient care data from prehospital
providers, receiving hospitals, and specialty care centers.
Analysis Prepared by:
Patty Rodgers / HEALTH / (916) 319-2097 FN:
0000322
AB 1129
Page 5