Pennsylvania Act 44 Recognizes EMS Bike Medics

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by Michael J. Patton, CRNA, PHRN, Esq.
Lehigh Valley (PA) Health Network Anesthesia Services

In June 17, 2016, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf signed into law Act 44 (P. L. 338, No. 44) which amended Title 75 (Motor Vehicle Code) of Pennsylvania’s Consolidated Statutes to recognize Emergency Medical Service (EMS) Bike Medics and afford them the same rights and obligations currently afforded to Police Cyclists in the Commonwealth. The intent of this article is to familiarize the reader with the legislative language used in the law and to provide a short history of the logistics involved in its passage. The ultimate purpose is to assist those who might wish to pursue similar legislation in their own jurisdictions. The reader will notice that seven years’ time elapsed from idea on paper to passage of the law. Attempting to affect the legislative process is not for those without perseverance, and ultimately requires at least one champion in the legislature who believes in and will push for your cause.

Act 44 added under subsection 3105, “drivers of emergency vehicles”, a “paragraph (i) that defines a “bike medic” as an individual operating a pedalcycle who: (1) is certified by the PA Department of Health (PADOH) as an emergency medical services provider; (2) is a member of an EMS agency that is certified by the PADOH and operating within their scope of practice; (3) has successfully completed a basic EMS cycling program approved by the PADOH; (4) wears emergency first responder appropriate attire for operating upon the highways in accordance with national standards; and (5) makes use of appropriate visual and auditory warning devices in the performance of official duties.

For completeness sake, here is a URL to the exact language of the law: http://tinyurl.com/PAEMSCLegislation. ; One can also search the Pennsylvania General Assembly website by typing “bike medics” in the search tab to locate Senate Bill 61: http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/bills/.

As a healthcare provider, attorney, and IPMBA EMSCI #195 (now retired) who attended a number of EMS-related public safety cyclist courses with IPMBA, and then taught the basic IPMBA EMS Cyclist Course in various capacities with EMSCI John Russell of the Bucks County Rescue Squad and PCI John Washington, formerly of the University of Pennsylvania Police Department, I became committed to ensuring that the EMS cyclist in Pennsylvania was recognized by law. Impromptu discussions regarding bike medics with a local member of the Pennsylvania Senate – Stewart Greenleaf – on two occasions in 2008 led me to compose a formal letter to his office in January 2009. A copy of the letter was also forwarded to my local Congressperson – State Representative Katharine Watson.

That letter discussed the purpose and benefits of Bike Medics as described in IPMBA literature and included language for a potential law that I devised in consultation with John Russell. Senator Greenleaf initially introduced the bill (Senate Bill 738) in April 2009, when it was first referred to the Transportation Committee. That Committee failed to take any additional action on the measure and it died in committee during the 2009-2010 legislative session. The measure was reintroduced in the 2011-2012 legislative session (SB 145), but again failed to receive any consideration by the Transportation Committee. Senator Greenleaf reintroduced the measure as Senate Bill 312 during the 2013-2014 legislative session, where it was favorably considered by the Senate Transportation Committee on June 4, 2014. However, the measure was then sent to Senate Appropriations (to determine what, if any, effect it would have on the state’s budget), where it died in committee. During the 2015-2016 legislative session, Senator Greenleaf reintroduced the measure as Senate Bill 61. The legislation was favorably reported out of the Senate Transportation Committee in February 2015, and later the Appropriations Committee, with the full Senate unanimously approving the bill on April 13, 2015.

Since Pennsylvania has a bicameral legislature, any legislation must be reviewed and approved by both houses of Congress (much like our federal government). In March 2016, Senator Greenleaf, with support from Representative Watson, managed to get the bill through the state House of Representatives without much difficulty. However, some members of the House and legislative watchdogs for the Pennsylvania Department of Health requested a number of revisions that included tweaking some of the definitions and the language of the measure. One of those amendments included the requirement that a bike medic successfully complete a basic EMS cycling program “approved by the Department of Health.” After the House amendments were incorporated into the final bill, the measure was returned to the Senate for a concurrence vote. The Senate concurred with the House amendments, and on June 7, 2016, voted unanimously to pass the legislation. The legislation was signed into law by Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf as Act 44 on June 17, 2016, and it officially took effect 60 days later, on August 16, 2016.

As you can see, the process of effecting state legislation is not a short-term project. However, with a good idea, a logical thought process, perseverance, and the support of one or two legislators within your jurisdiction, anything is possible. There is no time like the present to embark on a similar mission. With recent acts of terrorism fresh in the minds of legislators, similar to the post-9/11 concerns regarding the security of the nation, now is the perfect time to work toward the goal of having your state’s EMS bike teams recognized and protected by the force of law.

With the legislation having gone into effect in Pennsylvania on August 16 of this year, the final step in this long process will be to clarify with the PADOH the meaning of the language “approved by the Department of Health.” I suspect this will require the Department of Health policy-makers to review the available EMS Cyclist programs and establish that approval process. It is my expectation that the PA Department of Health will have no difficulty recognizing the EMS Cyclist programs of the International Police Mountain Bike Association (IPMBA). As of this writing, that mission has been undertaken by Mr. John Russell of the Bucks County Rescue Squad EMS Bike Team.

Michael J. Patton, CRNA, PHRN, Esq. is a Nurse Anesthetist employed by Lehigh Valley Health Network Anesthesia Services in Allentown, PA, and a licensed, non-practicing Attorney. He has been involved with a number of volunteer public emergency service organizations since 1977. During the past 40 years, Mr. Patton has been active with EMS, Fire-Rescue, Auxiliary Police, Wilderness Search & Rescue, Hazardous Materials response, amateur radio emergency communications, and emergency animal response teams. He became involved with IPMBA in the mid 2000’s and was an EMS Cyclist Instructor until 2012. He is currently a Life Member of the Warminster Volunteer Ambulance Corps and an Associate Member of the Bucks County Rescue Squad EMS Bike Team. Mostly retired from emergency response, Mr. Patton is currently pursuing a Master’s Degree in Emergency & Disaster Management from American Military University. He has resided in Warminster and Warrington Townships in Bucks County, PA for 56 years. He can be reached at w3mjp@comcast.net.

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