Altoona, PA – Over the last three years, the Shapiro Administration has invested nearly $56 million so Pennsylvania’s EMS agencies can purchase the equipment they need to keep patients safe and stable during an emergency. Today, Department of Health (DOH) Secretary Dr. Debra Bogen highlighted the critical need for continued funding and explained how an additional $6 million investment in Governor Josh Shapiro’s 2026-2027 proposed budget will do just that.
“When Pennsylvanians call 911, they expect well trained and well-equipped EMS professionals to address their health crisis,” said Secretary Bogen. “Investing in up-to-date equipment and the training to use it doubles-down on EMS’s ability to improve a patient’s condition before reaching a hospital, which can make the difference between life and death.”
At a visit to Southern Allegheny EMS (SAEMS) Regional Council headquarters, local EMS leaders underscored how funding medical first responders in Pennsylvania directly improves patient outcomes.
The proposed $6 million investment in the 2026-2027 budget will be used to purchase equipment for EMS professionals, enabling emergency care to be as effective as possible across Pennsylvania where more than 17,000 EMS providers respond to over 2.2 million calls annually.
In partnership with Pennsylvania’s 13 regional EMS councils, this additional $6 million investment is sourced from the EMS Operating Fund (EMSOF).
Southern Allegheny EMS (SAEMS) Regional Council applied this funding to purchase 70 video laryngoscopes and 70 intravenous (IV) pumps to improve care efficiency, procedure accuracy, and patient outcomes.
The regional council includes Bedford, Blair, Cambria, Fulton, Huntington, and Somerset counties and oversees nearly 75 EMS agencies. This new equipment will help paramedics, advanced emergency medical technicians (AEMTs), and prehospital registered nurses (PHRNs), care for critically ill and injured patients being transported to a hospital.
“This equipment — combined with our regional quality assurance program — will have a direct and measurable impact on critically ill patients who require advanced airway procedures and the need of advanced medications,” said Executive Director of SAEMS, Jordan Anthony. “With the additional funding being made available by the Shapiro Administration, our Board of Directors will continue to follow the same equitable distribution process.”
Response times are one of the many factors that contribute to a patient’s outcome, especially for those facing critical conditions such as cardiac arrest or respiratory failure. Tools like video laryngoscopes, which provide a precise view of the airway, make the intubation process quicker and easier to perform when the chances of life-threatening complications are high.
All agencies within the region will use the same equipment for quality assurance and to successfully track usage and success rates.
Similarly, modern intravenous (IV) pumps help EMS professionals deliver fluids, such as nutrients or medications, more efficiently and safely than traditional manual methods. Supplying ambulances with IV pumps can protect patients by preventing adverse reactions to certain drugs and reduce errors when providing precise doses.
The Shapiro Administration is committed to making the strategic investments that help EMS professionals directly improve the quality of care for Pennsylvanians. Since taking office in 2023, Governor Shapiro prioritized higher mileage reimbursement rates for ambulances by signing Act 15 into law, ensuring agencies are 100% reimbursed for the miles they travel with a patient receiving care or being transported to a hospital.
The Department of Health also launched a three-year tuition assistance program in 2024, which provides up to $5,000 in reimbursement to individuals who earn an Emergency Medical Responder (EMR), Emergency Medical Technician (EMT), Advanced Emergency Medical Technician (AEMT), or Paramedic certification.
EMS agencies are eligible to receive up to $5,000 in reimbursement per fiscal year for expenses related to recruitment and retention efforts.
Read an overview of Governor Shapiro’s 2026-2027 budget proposal or explore the full Budget in Brief here.
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Editor’s Note: Video downloads and photos from the news conference at Southern Allegheny EMS (SAEMS) Regional Council headquarters are available on PAcast.