WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) -- Changes could be coming to EMS response in rural parts of the state. A house bill headed to the governor's desk would change the number of trained medical providers required to be in ambulances. KSN looks at perspectives from both sides of the bill and what it means for he althcare staffing. Towne West rezoning to potentially bring economic boost, jobs One key part of House Bill 2280 affects counties with a population of less than 30,000 people. They'd be required to have one person trained as an EMT or paramedic, with the ambulance driver only required to be trained in CPR. This is being done to make EMS staffing more flexible for smaller communities, but some say it raises concerns about the quality of patient care in critical situations. "This simply just reduces the amount of knowledge or education that personnel on the ambulance are going to have to have," said Shane Pearson, Vice Chair of the Kansas Board of Emergency Medical Services (KBEMS). Shane Pearson has concerns about the bill. He is the Vice Chair of KBEMS, but he doesn't speak for the board. His nearly 30 years of experience as a paramedic leave him concerned that public safety is being compromised to address EMS shortages. "Rather than investing money into the local EMS agency to ensure adequate staffing for some of those less populated counties under 30,000, that was, in my opinion, should have been a better fix, granted a much more long-term fix," said Pearson. Great Bend Fire Chief Brent Smith sees that side but also sees the challenges many small counties like Barton face when trying to staff their EMS. He says his EMS department will usually have two trained medical providers. "But there's also instances where we need to get that person to the hospital. And sometimes that may, you know, it may be a non-EMT, but certified in CPR," said Chief Smith. Chief Smith says this allows EMS professionals to serve their smaller communities, which volunteers often run. "You know, when they get off work from their full-time job, the one that pays most of their bills and supplies, their benefits, but they want to help their community. And so, this bill enables that," said Chief Smith. The Kansas Board of Emergency Medical Services Executive Director tells KSN some components were lost in this bill. "KBEMS believed we had a solution which was working to globally address staffing shortages as they were being encountered in Kansas communities. Eight communities were successfully utilizing this solution. Clearly, our Legislature heard from their constituents the solution was not working and HB 2039 is their attempt to address those non-working portions. We appreciate the Legislature compromising with us to keep some important components, but in the end, some were lost. We continue to believe the standard EMS staffing for all Kansans experiencing any emergency is a minimum of 2 persons trained in emergency medicine, from an emergency medical responder through a physician, and will continue to help our communities reach that standard." ...read more read less