CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A new state law is providing relief to West Virginians in need of emergency services across the state.
The new “treat-in-place” protocols took effect earlier this month after Gov. Jim Justice signed the bill in March. It’s a move Justice said will help alleviate long wait times in emergency rooms and keep ambulances from being tied up at the hospital.
State Department of Health’s Office of Emergency Medical Services Director Jody Ratliff told MetroNews patients will still be required to call 911, except now they’ll be able to receive treatment at home.
“They’ll be in the comfort of their home. They can stay right there at home and don’t have to go anywhere, and it frees the ERs up a little bit,” Ratliff said.
Patients with the following five conditions will qualify for the “treat-in-place” law among other things including hypoglycemia (low blood sugar), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), seizures, overdoses and cardiac arrest.
Ratliff said it’s difficult for some patients to get to an ER because not all areas of the state have a hospital around the corner. He said this law is good for a rural state like West Virginia.
“The hospitals do everything they can to provide everything they can possibly provide, but we do have counties where no hospitals are even there so and EMS is basically a primary care for some of these folks especially after hours,” he said.
The new protocols were developed during the COVID pandemic. OEMS then developed the education for the protocols, Ratliff said.
“During COVID, Medicaid had a treatment in place to try to take some of the relief off of the ERs in the state and those were basically related to COVID-type of diseases. After that, Medicaid here in the state decided to keep that on but expand it so it’s not just for COVID-related,” he explained.
The measure also gives EMS companies the ability to bill for certain services provided in the home that do not require an ambulance transport to the hospital. Ratliff said the initiative will free up EMS units to respond faster to emergencies.
To view the protocols, CLICK HERE.