2012 Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes
Title 35 - HEALTH AND SAFETY
Chapter 81 - Emergency Medical Services System
Section 8126 - Medical command physicians and facility medical directors

     § 8126.  Medical command physicians and facility medical
                directors.
        (a)  Role of medical command physician.--A medical command
     physician communicates with and issues medical command orders to
     EMS providers when they seek direction. A medical command
     physician shall have an arrangement with a medical command
     facility to provide medical command on its behalf and shall
     function under the direction of a medical command facility
     medical director and under the policies and procedures of the
     medical command facility. A medical command physician shall
     provide medical command to EMS providers consistent with
     Statewide protocols and protocols that are in effect in either
     the region in which treatment originates or the region from
     which the EMS providers begin receiving medical command from a
     medical command physician. For good cause, a medical command
     physician may give medical command orders that are inconsistent
     with these protocols.
        (b)  Certification.--The department shall certify as a
     medical command physician a physician who was approved as a
     medical command physician in this Commonwealth immediately prior
     to the effective date of this section. The department shall also
     certify as a medical command physician a physician who:
            (1)  Completes an application for medical command
        physician certification on a form or through an electronic
        application process, as prescribed by the department.
            (2)  Satisfies one of the following:
                (i)  Has successfully completed an emergency medicine
            residency program accredited by a residency program
            accrediting body recognized by the State Board of
            Medicine or the State Board of Osteopathic Medicine.
                (ii)  Has successfully completed or taught an
            advanced cardiac life support course acceptable to the
            department within the preceding two years and has
            successfully completed or taught an advanced trauma life
            support course acceptable to the department and an
            advanced pediatric life support course acceptable to the
            department or other programs determined by the department
            to meet or exceed the standards of these programs.
                (iii)  Has had an emergency medicine practice in
            another jurisdiction and establishes to the department
            that the physician has a combination of training,
            education and emergency medicine practice that makes the
            physician qualified to serve as a medical command
            physician.
            (3)  Has completed a medical command course offered or
        approved by the department.
            (4)  Is practicing as an emergency medicine physician or
        is participating as a resident in a second or subsequent year
        in an emergency medicine residency program or has had at
        least three years' experience as a full-time emergency
        medicine physician.
            (5)  Has a current Drug Enforcement Agency number, except
        for an emergency medicine resident who is authorized to use a
        hospital's Drug Enforcement Agency number for practice within
        the emergency medicine residency program.
            (6)  Has an arrangement with a medical command facility
        to serve as a medical command physician for that facility
        after receiving certification as a medical command physician.
        (c)  Triennial registration.--A medical command physician's
     certification is deemed registered for three years after
     issuance. A medical command physician shall triennially register
     the physician's certification with the department on a form or
     through an electronic application process, as prescribed by the
     department, as a condition for continued practice as a medical
     command physician. The department shall issue a triennial
     registration of a medical command physician's certification to a
     medical command physician within 30 days after the physician
     applies for a new registration if the physician demonstrates
     that the physician continues to meet the requirements for the
     certification, except the requirements of subsection (b)(2), and
     satisfies such other requirements as the department may impose
     by regulation.
        (d)  Residents.--A physician who is in a second year in an
     emergency medicine residency program may issue medical command
     orders only to the extent that performance of that function is a
     component of and within the framework of the emergency medicine
     residency program and may do so only with supervision by a
     medical command physician who has served as a medical command
     physician for at least two years, has completed two years in an
     emergency medicine residency program or has secured medical
     command certification by satisfying subsection (b)(2)(iii).
        (e)  Role of medical command facility medical director.--A
     medical command facility medical director shall be responsible
     for the following in a medical command facility:
            (1)  Medical command.
            (2)  Quality improvement.
            (3)  Serving as a liaison with the regional EMS council
        medical director.
            (4)  Participating in prehospital training activities.
            (5)  Verifying to the department that a physician seeking
        a medical command physician's certification, based upon the
        physician's arrangement with the medical command facility,
        meets all certification requirements.
            (6)  Ensuring that the medical command facility satisfies
        statutory and regulatory requirements.
        (f)  Certification.--The department shall certify as a
     medical command facility medical director a physician who was
     approved as a medical command facility medical director in this
     Commonwealth immediately prior to the effective date of this
     section. The department shall also certify as a medical command
     facility medical director a physician who:
            (1)  Completes an application for medical command
        facility medical director certification on a form or through
        an electronic application process, as prescribed by the
        department.
            (2)  Is currently serving as a medical command physician.
            (3)  Satisfies one of the following:
                (i)  Has successfully completed a residency program
            in emergency medicine accredited by a residency program
            accrediting body recognized by the State Board of
            Medicine or the State Board of Osteopathic Medicine.
                (ii)  Has successfully:
                    (A)  completed a residency program in surgery,
                internal medicine, family medicine, pediatrics or
                anesthesiology accredited by a residency program
                accrediting body recognized by the State Board of
                Medicine or the State Board of Osteopathic Medicine;
                and
                    (B)  completed or taught:
                        (I)  an advanced cardiac life support course
                    acceptable to the department within the preceding
                    two years;
                        (II)  an advanced trauma life support course
                    acceptable to the department; and
                        (III)  an advanced pediatric life support
                    course acceptable to the department.
            (4)  Has experience in prehospital and emergency
        department care of acutely ill or injured patients.
            (5)  Has experience in providing medical command
        direction to EMS providers.
            (6)  Has experience in the training of EMS providers both
        below and above the advanced EMT level.
            (7)  Has experience in the medical audit, review and
        critique of EMS providers below and above the advanced EMT
        level.
            (8)  Has an arrangement with a medical command facility
        to serve as its medical director after receiving
        certification as a medical command facility medical director.
        (g)  Triennial registration.--A medical command facility
     medical director's certification is deemed registered for three
     years after issuance. A medical command facility medical
     director shall triennially register the physician's
     certification with the department on a form or through an
     electronic application process, as prescribed by the department,
     as a condition for continued practice as a medical command
     facility medical director. The department shall issue a
     triennial registration of a medical command facility medical
     director certification to a medical command facility medical
     director within 30 days after the physician applies for a new
     registration if the physician demonstrates that the physician
     continues to meet the requirements for the certification, except
     the requirements of subsection (f)(3), and satisfies such other
     requirements as the department may impose by regulation.
        (h)  Grounds for discipline.--The department may discipline a
     medical command physician or medical command facility medical
     director for the following reasons:
            (1)  Violating a responsibility imposed on the physician
        by this chapter or the related regulations.
            (2)  Without good cause, failing to comply with a medical
        treatment, transport or transfer protocol established or
        approved by the department.
        (i)  Types of discipline authorized.--When the department is
     empowered to discipline a medical command physician or medical
     command facility medical director under subsection (h), the
     department may do one or more of the following:
            (1)  Deny the application for a certification.
            (2)  Issue a public reprimand.
            (3)  Revoke, suspend, limit or otherwise restrict or
        condition the certification.
            (4)  Impose a civil money penalty not exceeding $1,000
        for each incident in which the physician engages in conduct
        that constitutes a basis for discipline.
            (5)  Stay enforcement of any suspension, revocation or
        other discipline and place the individual on probation with
        the right to vacate the probationary order for noncompliance.