C.R.S. § 25-3.5-102: Legislative declaration.

(1) The general assembly hereby declares that it is in the public interest to provide available, coordinated, and quality emergency medical and trauma services to the people of this state. It is the intent of the general assembly in enacting this article to establish an emergency medical and trauma services system, consisting of at least treatment, transportation, communication, and documentation subsystems, designed to prevent premature mortality and to reduce the morbidity that arises from critical injuries, exposure to poisonous substances, and illnesses.

(2) To effect this end, the general assembly finds it necessary that the department of public health and environment assist, when requested by local government entities, in planning and implementing any one of such subsystems so that it meets local and regional needs and requirements and that the department coordinate local systems so that they interface with an overall state system providing maximally effective emergency medical and trauma systems.

(3) The general assembly further finds that the provision of adequate emergency medical and trauma services on highways in all areas of the state is a matter of statewide concern and requires state financial assistance and support.

(4) The general assembly also finds that:

(a) Colorado's emergency medical services system not only provides individuals who are ill or injured emergency medical and trauma care twenty-four hours per day and three hundred sixty-five days per year, but also serves as a critical safety net for many Coloradans who might not have immediate access to other health-care services;

(b) As highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic, Colorado's emergency medical services system augments community health, preventative health, and public health programs throughout the state;

(c) Despite the essential nature of the emergency medical services system and the assumption held by members of the public that, once a 911 call is placed, an ambulance will quickly arrive, emergency medical services are not a required service in Colorado;

(d) While emergency medical services are generally available throughout the state, some Coloradans no longer have access to a Colorado-based emergency medical services system, and other Colorado communities are at risk of losing their emergency medical services;

(e) The instability and unsustainability of emergency medical services in some parts of the state puts lives at risk;

(f) Ground ambulance service is the only component of Colorado's emergency medical system that is not subject to statewide standardization and regulation, which statewide standardization and regulation would provide medical and operational benefits and consumer protections;

(g) The lack of statewide standardization and regulation for ground ambulance services inhibits consumer protections and investigations and adjudication of consumer complaints because the department lacks authority to investigate and adjudicate any complaints related to ground ambulances; and

(h) To ensure sustainability of, and equitable access to, emergency medical services in Colorado, a comprehensive assessment of the emergency medical services system, along with recommendations for modernizing and sustaining the emergency medical services system, should be performed.

(5) (a) The general assembly further finds that:

(I) The provision of emergency medical services, including ambulance services and air ambulance services, is essential to the protection of the public health, safety, and welfare of the people of the state of Colorado;

(II) Access to timely and appropriate medical care in out-of-hospital services is a critical component of the state's health-care infrastructure, particularly in rural and frontier areas of the state in which hospitals and other health-care resources may be limited; and

(III) Emergency medical services function as an integral part of the continuum of care by bridging prehospital, interfacility, and community-based health-care delivery.

(b) Therefore, the general assembly declares that:

(I) It is necessary to recognize and support emergency medical services as an essential service in the state of Colorado and to ensure that each resident of and visitor to the state has access to emergency medical services;

(II) As essential health-care providers and first responders, emergency medical service providers are expected to respond during a declared disaster, prescribed closure, crisis, or emergency; and

(III) It is the policy of the state of Colorado that:

(A) When in active service, emergency medical service providers are authorized to travel unencumbered upon the roads and highways within the state; and

(B) At any time or place in which emergency medical service providers are called to respond, their performance of emergency medical services falls within the duties and classified demands of their jobs and the regular usage and wear of their vehicles and equipment.

(6) The general assembly recognizes and declares that emergency medical services are essential. When acting on duty or responding as a volunteer, emergency medical service providers, including providers of emergency ambulance service and nonemergency ambulance service, are recognized as providing essential services regardless of location.