We’re one-third of the way through the legislative session, and my bills are making their way through the legislative process. Several have already passed out of the House and are being heard in the Senate.
HB26-1115 reinstates Colorado’s existing telecom surcharge that funds emergency dispatch, after a department decision jeopardized $17 million in 911 funding and $4 million in 988 funding. I’m proud it passed out of committee unanimously and received bipartisan support on the House floor. HB26-1051 – which extends the deadline for a state microgrid grant program to allow the town of Rico to finish installing a battery system that will insulate them against power outages – also passed out of the House with broad support.
One of my biggest bills this year is the Availability of Emergency Medical Services Act, HB26-1069, which is an important step in modernizing how Colorado responds to emergencies. Treating patients on-scene has always been a major, life-saving part of EMS’ work in our communities. However, under our health care system’s current structure, EMS is only reimbursed for transporting people to ERs.
Federal and state-level data, as well as a local project conducted by Delta County EMS, found that treating and releasing patients when clinically appropriate, rather than transporting them to the ER, saves thousands of dollars per call for providers and patients. Studies also found significant savings when EMS is allowed to transport patients who require a different level of care to places like urgent care centers and behavioral health centers, and identified opportunities to improve technology to integrate telehealth in some cases.
HB26-1069 will allow health plans to reimburse emergency medical services for medical care they provide to patients on-scene, as well as for transport to behavioral health crisis centers. To maximize the cost savings identified by federal, state and local research, Medicaid will be able to reimburse not just for treatment in place but also for emergency telehealth and transport to a broader list of appropriate locations, including urgent care centers.
I want to be clear that this bill does not change EMS personnel’s scope of practice. EMS standards of evaluation and care remain the same, and as always, patients will have the choice of where to receive care. This will not stop anyone from being transported to an ER if that is what they want or need. Instead, this bill will empower EMS and patients to make smart decisions, tailored to the care they need.
I worked closely with our local EMS and fire chiefs to get this bill off the ground, and I’m so proud that we received unanimous support from the Health and Human Services Committee. 1069 is a major step toward ensuring we use our EMS resources safely and effectively. It will save Colorado and our communities millions of dollars in health care costs in the coming years and boost reimbursements for rural EMS, who desperately need more funding.
In other news, budget week is coming up at the end of March, when we’ll hear the long bill covering the entire state budget for the coming year. My column next month will walk through the major highlights of the budget and discuss what we can expect for 2026-27.
Thank you to the Southwest Colorado Chamber of Commerce, our local fire chiefs, the Emergency Medical Services Advisory Council, the Four Corners Rainbow Youth Center, Habitat for Humanity of Archuleta, Community Connections and others for making trips to the Capitol this month to visit and share your thoughts with me on how best to represent our community.
Katie Stewart represents House District 59 in the Colorado Statehouse, which encompasses Archuleta, La Plata, and San Juan counties and most of Montezuma County. Reach her at katie.stewart.house@coleg.gov.
