(a) The Legislature finds and declares that the ability of some prehospital emergency medical care personnel to move from the jurisdiction of one local EMS agency which issued certification and authorization to the jurisdiction of another local EMS agency which utilizes the same level of emergency medical care personnel will be unreasonably hindered if those personnel are required to be retested and recertified by each local EMS agency.
(b) It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this section and Section 1797.185 to ensure that EMT-P personnel who have met state competency standards for their basic scope of practice, as defined in Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 100135) of Division 9 of Title 22 of the California Code of Regulations, and are currently certified are recognized statewide without having to repeat testing or certification for that same basic scope of practice.
(c) It is the intent of the Legislature that local EMS agencies may require prehospital emergency medical care personnel who were certified in another jurisdiction to be oriented to the local EMS system and receive training and demonstrate competency in any optional skills for which they have not received accreditation. It is also the intent of the Legislature that no individual who possesses a valid California EMT-P certificate shall be prevented from beginning working within the standard statewide scope of practice of an EMT-P if he or she is accompanied by a EMT-P who is currently certified in California and is accredited by the local EMS agency. It is further the intent of the Legislature that the local EMS agency provide, or arrange for the provision of, training and accreditation testing in local EMS operational policies and procedures and any optional skills utilized in the local EMS system within 30 days of application for accreditation as an EMT-P by the local EMS agency.
(d) It is the intent of the Legislature that subdivisions (a), (b), and (c) not be construed to hinder the ability of local EMS agencies to maintain medical control within their EMS system in accordance with the requirements of this division.
(Amended by Stats. 1989, Ch. 1362, Sec. 2. Effective October 2, 1989.)