Abstract
The National Association of EMS Physicians (NAEMSP), the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP), the Air Medical Physician Association (AMPA), the Association of Air Medical Services (AAMS), and the National Association of State EMS Officials (NASEMSO) believe that patient care and outcomes are optimized by using air medical transport services that are licensed air ambulance providers with robust physician medical director oversight and ongoing quality assessment and review. Only air ambulance medical transport services with these credentials should advertise/market themselves as air ambulance services.
Position
The National Association of EMS Physicians (NAEMSP), the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP), the Air Medical Physician Association (AMPA), the Association of Air Medical Services (AAMS), and the National Association of State EMS Officials (NASEMSO) believe that patient care and outcomes are optimized by using air medical transport services that are licensed air ambulance providers with robust physician medical director oversight and ongoing quality assessment and review. Only air ambulance medical transport services with these credentials should advertise/market themselves as air ambulance services.
Recommendations
Every state should develop regulations or statutes regulating the advertising and/or marketing of air ambulance medical transport services.
These regulations or statutes should only allow an entity to advertise and/or market as an air ambulance medical transport service if the entity possesses a valid air ambulance medical transport license.
These regulations or statutes should require the air ambulance medical transport service to inform the client at the time transport is arranged if another licensed air ambulance medical transport service will complete the transport, including providing the name, contact information, and licensure information of that service.
Active physician medical direction, oversight, and ongoing performance improvement through quality assessment and review shall be a component of state air ambulance medical transport licensure.