Marburg Virus Disease: New EMS Guidelines

Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers (VHFs) are severe illnesses caused by a range of viruses, some of which have high fatality rates. Although cases are rare in the United States, these viruses are becoming more prevalent internationally. Examples of VHFs include Marburg virus disease (MVD), with a fatality rate averaging around 50% (ranging from 24% to 88%), Lassa fever, with a hospital fatality rate of 15% to 20% (and as high as 50% in pandemic settings), Ebola virus disease (EVD), and Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF). The recent national attention surrounding a fatal Lassa fever case in Iowa underscores the importance for EMS clinicians to stay informed about VHFs.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Office of EMS strongly encourages EMS clinicians to familiarize themselves with VHFs, including where they occur, how they spread, what questions to ask patients, and how to protect themselves. The National Emerging Special Pathogens Training & Education Center (NETEC) provides guidance for the management of VHFs and has recently updated the MVD NETEC guidelines for EMS clinicians, in October 2024 to align with current CDC recommendations. These guidelines for EMS clinicians emphasize the "Identify, Isolate, and Inform" paradigm, previously used for diseases like Ebola and mpox.

Emergency responders are encouraged to learn the signs and symptoms of VHFs and to assess patients with travel-related questions when appropriate. While most EMS clinicians in the United States are unlikely to encounter a VHF case during routine operations, international outbreaks heighten the risk of encountering an infected patient who may have traveled from an affected region. EMS agencies serving areas with international ports of entry should be especially vigilant.

Sign up to receive the latest news from the Office of EMS, including webinars, newsletters and industry updates.

Contact Us

1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
Washington, DC 20590
nhtsa.ems@dot.gov

Register now for our upcoming National Rural Health Day webinar

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Office of Minority Health (CMS OMH) invites you to celebrate National Rural Health Day on November 19 at 2 p.m. ET with a webinar highlighting the latest resources from CMS including reports and information on rural, tribal, and geographically isolated communities. We’ll also get to feature the work of a 2024 CMS Health Equity Awardee Augusta Health to improve health equity within the Shenandoah Valley.

When: November 19 from 2 – 3 pm ET

Where: Virtual webinar, please register

Registration:https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_8e5JeFaiTfOH8sWvPKwsiQ#/registration

We’re proud to have recognized Augusta Health as a 2024 CMS Health Equity Award winner for their work in helping to improve health care access in rural communities. Augusta Health is a non-profit, independent hospital serving communities of the Shenandoah Valley in Virgina. Since its launch in 2022, their Primary Care Mobile Clinic program has grown to 14 different sites every month including community centers, churches, fire houses, the mayor’s office, and homeless shelters. In one year, the program provided over 1,700 primary care visits for 825 patients at 17 different sites. Augusta Health’s Primary Care Mobile Clinic program illustrates the impact of community-driven interventions in addressing health disparities.

Click here to register.

Paid for by the US Department of Health and Human Services.

Dear Ground Ambulance Providers and Suppliers,

We wanted you to be aware that we posted the following announcement on our Ambulances Services Center website:

CY 2025 Physician Fee Schedule Final Rule

CMS issued the CY 2025 Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) final rule that announces finalized policy changes for Medicare payments under the PFS and other Medicare Part B payment policy issues, including ambulance services. For CY 2025, we proposed to modify the definition of advanced life support level two (ALS2) at § 414.605 by adding the administration of low titer O+ whole blood transfusion (WBT) to the list of ALS2 procedures. We also solicited comments on whether we should add alternative blood product treatments, such as the administration of packed red blood cells (PRBCs) and plasma, to the list of ALS2 procedures.

After consideration of public comments, and considering further that the indications for use, storage requirements, administration, monitoring, and training for the use of PRBCs and plasma are similar to those previously described for WBT, we are finalizing our proposal to modify the definition of ALS2 at §414.605 by adding the administration of prehospital blood transfusion (PHBT) which includes low titer O+ and O- whole blood transfusion therapy, PRBCs, plasma, or a combination of PRBCs and plasma. A ground ambulance transport that provides one of these PHBTs would itself constitute an ALS2 level transport.

IV Fluid Conservation
Briefing and Supply Update

On Monday, October 28th, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services hosted a briefing on intravenous fluid (IV) conservation best practices.  This session was recorded and is now available at the link below. 

Up-to-date information on shortages related to Hurricane Helene’s impact on Baxter’s North Cove, NC, facility can be found on the U.S. Food & Drug Administration’s Hurricane Helene webpage, as well as on Baxter’s website.

Sign up to receive the latest news from the Office of EMS, including webinars, newsletters and industry updates.

Contact Us

1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
Washington, DC 20590
nhtsa.ems@dot.gov

NHTSA’s Office of EMS Hosts Education Workshop on August 14

NHTSA’s Office of EMS will host a 4-hour workshop to discuss and prioritize the responses to the EMS Education Agenda 2050 (EEA2050) Request For Information (RFI). Published in the Federal Register in October of 2023, the RFI remained open until the end of March 2024. It requested responses to twenty-two questions from all sources about the vision of EMS Education in the United States by the year 2050.

The EEA2050 workshop will take place as a pre-National Association of EMS Educators (NAEMSE) Symposium workshop.

• Date: Wednesday, August 14, 2024
• Time: 1 - 5 p.m. ET
• Location: Wyndham Grand Pittsburgh, 600 Commonwealth Pl, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15222

All EMS Education stakeholders are encouraged to attend and participate in this discussion.

This workshop is free to attend, but only registrants will be permitted to participate. No CEUs will be issued. Contact Clary.Mole@dot.gov if you have any questions.

Be Sure Your EMS Agency is Ready
to Care for Children in an Emergency

Your clinicians must be ready to provide optimal emergency care if you provide 911 response to incidents with sick or injured children. Whether you transport, or if your EMS agency is fire-based or a private company, you should know if you’re really “pediatric ready.”

The Prehospital Pediatric Readiness Project (PPRP) Assessment, led by HRSA’s EMS for Children Program, is providing EMS clinicians, their agencies, and their EMS systems a self-assessment now through July 31, 2024.

Here’s what your EMS colleagues are saying about the assessment:

• “EMS needs help on improving our pediatric readiness. We are so overwhelmed and understaffed that this often gets pushed to the back burner of priorities, unfortunately. I think there are some great learning points in the questions asked.” – Paramedic/EMS Director
• “This survey has given our agency a lot of information. We are currently updating all our policies to be more specific in many of the areas discussed in this survey.” – EMT, Volunteer Fire Department

Get to it:

1. Confirm who in your agency is responsible for completing the PPRP Assessment and encourage them to complete it – or volunteer to help
2. Watch a video that illustrates the importance of pediatric readiness
3. Access free tools and resources to improve specific aspects of your “readiness”

About the HRSA MCHB EMSC Program:

For 40 years, the Health Resources and Services Administration’s Emergency Medical Services for Children (EMSC) Program has worked to improve outcomes for acutely ill and injured children and reduce rates of serious injury, illness or death. Through research, practice and partnership, the EMSC Program strives to ensure that—no matter where a child lives—the health systems in their area provide high-quality, equitable emergency care.

Sign up to receive the latest news from the Office of EMS, including webinars, newsletters and industry updates.

Contact Us

1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
Washington, DC 20590
nhtsa.ems@dot.gov