Paramedics Now Covered Employees Under Public Safety Employee Benefits Act

February 18, 2019

Public Act 100-1132, which took effect on November 28, 2018, amends the definition of “firefighter” under the Public Safety Employee Benefits Act (the Act) to include paramedics, emergency medical technicians (EMTs), emergency medical technician-intermediates (EMT-I), or advanced emergency medical technicians (A-EMT) employed by a unit of local government. As such, these emergency medical personnel who do not perform firefighter functions will be entitled to the same employment benefits under the Act as law enforcement officers, firefighters, correctional and correctional probation officers. The Act provides lifetime employer-funded health insurance benefits to these employees and their families if they are killed or injured in the line-of-duty while responding to an emergency. Home rule units are not exempt from the Act and are subject to this amendment.