REPLICA and EMS Personnel

EMS personnel eligible under REPLICA must be 18 years of age, practice under the supervision of a medical director in their home state, and have an unrestricted license at or above the level of EMT in a member state. The term “license” includes states that still use “certification” for EMS personnel credentials. Members of the military that are separating from active duty, their spouses, and veterans will find an expedited process for licensure in REPLICA states. This includes members of the National Guard.

REPLICA is not a form of EMS licensure reciprocity. REPLICA extends a privilege for EMS personnel from member states to practice on a short-term, intermittent basis under approved circumstances. Examples of these circumstances include;

  • Reponses areas for EMS personnel that cross state lines
  • Staffing for large scale responses that are not at the level of a governor’s declaration of a disaster, including details in support of federal agencies examples including wildland firefighting teams, homeland security
  • Staffing for large scale planned special events examples such as concerts and sporting events

REPLICA has been written to cover all the variations in operational scenarios found in state EMS laws and rules in the United States, this includes:

  • The individual initiates a patient transport in a home state and transports the patient to a remote state (A -> B)
  • The individual originates in the home state, enters a remote state to pick up a patient and provide care and transport of the patient back to the home state (A -> B -> A)
  • The individual enters a remote state to pick up a patient and provide care and transport to a third member state (A -> B -> C)
  • The individual enters a remote state to provide patient care and/or transport within that remote state (A -> D)

EMS personnel providing patient care in a remote state will function within the Scope of Practice that is authorized in their home state unless modified by an appropriate authority.   The REPLICA Commission will further address the Scope of Practice discussion and appropriate authority in the rule writing process.  All rule writing by the Commission during public sessions, with periods open for public comment and testimony, no different then how states conduct rule writing.

Listen to an interview with Dia Gainor , Executive Director of NASEMSO about REPLICA, courtesy of the Professional Ambulance Association of Wisconsin (PAAW) The advantages to you as a patient care provider, your ambulance service and the state are discussed during this interview featured on “EMS to the Point”. (14 minutes in duration)