Officials with the Iowa Department of Public Health, Tuesday, said Menlo Fire and Rescue/EMS (Emergency Medical Services) has 20 days to request a hearing on disciplinary action that may be imposed on the organization, with regard to several deficiencies noted in a nine-page Probation/Civil Penalty statement. The report says IDPH may place an EMS service on probation and levy a civil penalty when it finds an EMS service that has committed [certain acts or offenses].

Events leading up to the Department’s actions began in Oct. 2014, when several deficiencies were noted and resolved with technical assistance. In Jan. 2015, Menlo Fire and Rescue received a citation and a warning, for failure to correct two deficiencies related to EMS vehicle and equipment standards. Upon re-inspection in Sept. 2017, additional deficiencies were found and resolved with technical assistance. During a re-inspection in Oct. 2018, repeated deficiencies were noted and, again resolved with technical assistance. The same was true for a re-inspection in Nov. 2019. But at that time, there were also repeated deficiencies that were noted and NOT resolved with technical assistance, with regard to ambulance and non-transport “Service program operations requirement(s).”

The statement called for all deficiencies identified in the IDPH action to be corrected and submitted to the EMS Field Coordinator within 30-days of the action becoming final (Dec. 19, 2019). Full payment of an $800 civil penalty must be submitted within 90 days of the Department’s action becoming final.

Read the entire nine-page document here: https://content.govdelivery.com/attachments/IACIO/2019/12/31/file_attachments/1350552/Melo%20Fire%20and%20Rescue%20Probation-Civil%20Penalty%20signed%2012.19.2019.pdf