WEMSA's Advocacy History
From the Capitol to the call, advocacy that moves EMS forward.
Since 1974, the Wisconsin EMS Association has been the statewide voice representing EMS providers, departments, and the communities they serve in Madison. What began as a small group of volunteer EMTs from Milwaukee County has grown into one of the largest state EMS associations in the country and a consistently active voice for EMS policy. This page tells that story: where WEMSA's advocacy work started, how it has grown, and the legislation it has helped shape into Wisconsin law.
Advocacy by the Numbers
Since 2003, WEMSA has tracked and taken a formal position on every EMS-related bill introduced in the Wisconsin Legislature. Over 12 legislative sessions, the results speak for themselves:
243Bills WEMSA has taken a position on since 2003, across 12 legislative sessions. |
52WEMSA-supported bills that have been signed into Wisconsin law. |
79.4%Share of all WEMSA positions that were in support of a bill - advocacy that is constructive and solution-oriented, not merely oppositional. |
82.1%Share of bills opposed by WEMSA that did not become law. Only 5 opposed bills have passed in more than 20 years. |
More than 85% of all bills that became law during this period were bills WEMSA supported, and WEMSA's legislative activity has grown considerably over time. More than 82% of all recorded WEMSA bill positions have come since 2013, and nearly 60% of all WEMSA-supported laws in the past two decades were enacted since 2017.
Areas of Impact
WEMSA's advocacy has touched nearly every part of the EMS system in Wisconsin. Legislation WEMSA has supported has helped:
- Fund EMS education and workforce development: including tuition and materials reimbursement for EMR, EMT, AEMT, and Paramedic licensure, and grants to technical colleges to expand EMS program capacity.
- Improve reimbursement for EMS care: establishing Medicaid reimbursement for treatment without transport, creating the ambulance provider assessment and supplemental reimbursement program, and increasing Medicaid ambulance transport reimbursement.
- Establish Community EMS in Wisconsin: creating the community paramedic and community EMT framework that allows EMS to provide approved preventive and follow-up care.
- Support rural EMS sustainability: funding rural service-level upgrades and adding rural EMS representation to the Wisconsin EMS Board.
- Protect EMS providers: strengthening penalties for assault, battery, and threats against EMS and health care workers, creating workers' compensation protections for occupational illness and PTSD, and improving legal protections around apologies and expressions of condolence.
- Modernize 911 and emergency communications: funding Next Generation 911 upgrades, dispatcher-assisted bystander CPR, and interoperable public-safety communications.
- Provide local funding flexibility: creating levy-limit exceptions and funding mechanisms for regional and joint EMS systems.
- Expand clinical scope and public health tools: expanding naloxone access and training, requiring CPR/AED instruction in schools, and clarifying EMS authority in emergency situations.
Where It Started
WEMSA's roots go back to December 23, 1973, when the Wisconsin EMT Association (WEMTA) was incorporated by 12 founding directors, nearly all from Milwaukee County. What started as a regional group holding monthly meetings at the Milwaukee County Medical Complex grew, over the following decade, into a statewide organization, powered by volunteers who kept showing up, adapting, and building something bigger year after year.
A few milestones mark the turning points:
- 1979 — WEMTA affiliates with the National Association of EMTs and begins its first involvement with the state EMS Training Committee, an early version of today's EMS Advisory Board.
- 1989 — After years of legislative effort, WEMTA achieves passage of Act 102, known as "One for Life," creating what is now the Funding Assistance Program (FAP), funding that has provided over half a billion dollars to Wisconsin ambulance services since.
- 1992 — WEMTA hires its first paid staff member and opens its first office, moving from an all-volunteer model to a professionally run association.
- 1996 — The organization changes its name to the Wisconsin EMS Association to represent all facets of emergency medical services, not just EMTs.
- 1998 — WEMSA retains a full-time lobbying firm to represent EMS in Madison on a daily basis, a relationship that continues today.
- 1999 — WEMSA worked on first responder certification, EMT background check requirements, and fighting proposed EMT license fees
- 2000 — work began on changing the single-paramedic rule; the LOSA (Length of Service Award) program was made law; Public Access Defibrillation was placed into law
- 2003 — Membership tops 5,000, making WEMSA the largest state EMS organization in the United States.
- 2017 — Wisconsin's Community EMS framework is signed into law, along with a record 10 WEMSA-supported bills in a single legislative session.
- 2023 — WEMSA-backed legislation increases permanent EMS Funding Assistance Program funding from $2.2 million to $25 million annually.
Today, that same commitment to representing Wisconsin's EMS community continues, formalized into a structured process of tracking, evaluating, and taking a position on every EMS-relevant bill introduced in Madison.
Legislative History by Session
Below is a session-by-session record of every WEMSA-supported bill that has become Wisconsin law since 2003, along with what each law accomplished and links to the bill and Act text if you'd like to dig into any of them further. Click a session to expand it.
No bills from this session became Wisconsin Acts. WEMSA supported Senate Bill 119, relating to payment of litigation expenses for emergency medical services personnel, firefighters, and law enforcement or correctional officers.
- 2005 Wisconsin Act 25 (Assembly Bill 100, For) — The state budget included funding and policy changes important to EMS, including Funding Assistance Program funding changes and support for Wisconsin's trauma system.
- 2005 Wisconsin Act 142 (Senate Bill 577, For) — Strengthened the Volunteer Fire Fighter and EMT Service Award Program and protected certain volunteer EMS earnings when calculating partial unemployment benefits.
- 2007 Wisconsin Act 38 (Assembly Bill 88, Undisclosed/For) — Authorized special Wisconsin license plates associated with first responders, creating public recognition and potentially supporting first-responder organizations.
- 2007 Wisconsin Act 7 (Assembly Bill 123, Undisclosed/For) — Changed how frequently volunteer firefighters could be paid. Its EMS effect was indirect but relevant to combined fire/EMS departments and personnel serving in both roles.
- 2007 Wisconsin Act 194 (Senate Bill 20, For) — Expanded or modified special license plates for firefighters. The EMS connection was primarily through combined fire/EMS agencies and dual-role personnel.
- 2007 Wisconsin Act 184 (Senate Bill 269, Against/Other) — Among several housing-related provisions, prohibited local governments from charging certain emergency-service fees, potentially restricting a municipality's ability to recover the cost of fire or EMS responses.
- 2007 Wisconsin Act 68 (Senate Bill 509, For) — Changed driver-education instruction and licensing examinations. Its EMS relevance was primarily improved driver awareness of emergency vehicles and roadway response situations.
- 2009 Wisconsin Act 273 (Assembly Bill 725, For) — Required high schools to provide instruction in CPR, cardiocerebral resuscitation, and AED use, increasing the number of potential bystanders able to begin lifesaving care before EMS arrives.
- 2009 Wisconsin Act 278 (Senate Bill 127, Against) — Changed notice and liability requirements involving medical-malpractice claims, potentially affecting EMS providers or medical directors when claims involved prehospital care.
- 2009 Wisconsin Act 140 (Senate Bill 308, For) — Required certain employers to allow volunteer firefighters, EMTs, first responders, and ambulance drivers to leave work to respond to emergencies, subject to statutory conditions.
- 2009 Wisconsin Act 284 (Senate Bill 429, For) — Created a workers' compensation presumption that certain communicable diseases contracted by qualifying EMS providers were work-related.
- 2011 Wisconsin Act 94 (Assembly Bill 69, Other) — Expanded Wisconsin's self-defense law. WEMSA's interest appears to have been ensuring firefighters and EMTs received protections comparable to those provided to law enforcement.
- 2011 Wisconsin Act 275 (Assembly Bill 149, For) — Strengthened penalties for falsely reporting an emergency, helping discourage false calls that unnecessarily consume limited EMS and public-safety resources.
- 2011 Wisconsin Act 72 (Assembly Bill 212, For) — Created or strengthened penalties for throwing bodily substances at public-safety workers, providing added protection to EMS professionals exposed to assault and infectious material.
- 2011 Wisconsin Act 276 (Assembly Bill 217, For) — Prohibited impersonating certain public officials and public-safety personnel, helping protect the credibility and authority of legitimate emergency responders.
- 2013 Wisconsin Act 242 (Assembly Bill 120, For) — Made certain apologies or expressions of condolence by health care providers inadmissible in civil proceedings, allowing providers, potentially including EMS professionals, to communicate compassion without automatically creating evidence of liability.
- 2013 Wisconsin Act 344 (Assembly Bill 270, For) — Expanded the types of providers eligible for Wisconsin's volunteer health care provider program and addressed malpractice coverage for certain volunteers.
- 2013 Wisconsin Act 253 (Assembly Bill 388, For) — Increased consequences for traffic violations that injure vulnerable highway users and updated driver education, relevant to roadway safety and prevention of serious injury.
- 2013 Wisconsin Act 200 (Assembly Bill 446, Other) — Expanded access to naloxone, established training and immunity provisions, and required certain EMTs to carry naloxone — materially expanding EMS's role in responding to opioid overdoses.
- 2013 Wisconsin Act 313 (Assembly Bill 539, For) — Authorized certain emergency vehicles to serve as escorts for vehicle processions, clarifying when and how emergency vehicles could perform that function.
- 2013 Wisconsin Act 97 (Senate Bill 119, For) — Ratified an emergency-management assistance compact between Wisconsin and Canadian provinces, facilitating cross-border sharing of emergency personnel and resources during major incidents.
- 2015 Wisconsin Act 390 (Assembly Bill 545, For) — Required lifesaving-skills instruction for students, including CPR and AED awareness, increasing the likelihood of care being started before EMS arrival.
- 2015 Wisconsin Act 113 (Senate Bill 143, For) — Modified ambulance staffing requirements involving EMTs and first responders, giving services additional staffing flexibility under defined circumstances.
- 2015 Wisconsin Act 26 (Senate Bill 182, Other) — Allowed qualifying out-of-state ambulance services to operate in Wisconsin without obtaining full Wisconsin ambulance-service licensure in certain situations.
- 2015 Wisconsin Act 83 (Senate Bill 210, For) — Allowed qualifying out-of-state EMS personnel to practice temporarily in Wisconsin without obtaining a Wisconsin credential, particularly when responding across state lines.
- 2015 Wisconsin Act 341 (Senate Bill 581, For) — Clarified when elected municipal officials could simultaneously hold other public positions, relevant in smaller communities where local officials may also serve in fire or EMS roles.
- 2017 Wisconsin Act 12 (Assembly Bill 59, For) — Modernized EMS terminology in state law, including changing “first responder” terminology to “emergency medical responder” and correcting related statutory references.
- 2017 Wisconsin Act 66 (Assembly Bill 151, For) — Established Wisconsin's Community EMS framework, including community paramedics and community EMTs, allowing EMS professionals to provide approved nontraditional services such as follow-up care, prevention, and care coordination.
- 2017 Wisconsin Act 350 (Assembly Bill 356, For) — Modified credential and service-license renewal requirements for EMS personnel and ambulance providers.
- 2017 Wisconsin Act 296 (Assembly Bill 654, For) — Established requirements and funding for dispatcher-assisted bystander CPR, helping 911 dispatchers guide callers through CPR before EMS arrives.
- 2017 Wisconsin Act 279 (Assembly Bill 871, For) — Created an intensive care-coordination initiative in Medicaid, with potential to better manage high-utilizer patients and reduce avoidable emergency calls and hospital use.
- 2017 Wisconsin Act 336 (Assembly Bill 872, For) — Expanded career and technical education incentive grants and student completion awards, creating financial incentives for students to earn qualifying credentials, potentially including EMS credentials.
- 2017 Wisconsin Act 96 (Senate Bill 238, For) — Provided state funding for EMR and EMT training and certification, directly addressing the cost of entering and remaining in the EMS workforce.
- 2017 Wisconsin Act 97 (Senate Bill 239, For) — Provided assistance for rural ambulance services seeking to upgrade their service level.
- 2017 Wisconsin Act 229 (Senate Bill 360, For) — Changed fees for special license plates recognizing firefighters, rescue squad members, EMTs, and first responders.
- 2017 Wisconsin Act 166 (Senate Bill 435, For) — Authorized EMTs and first responders to provide specified first aid to animals encountered during emergency responses without being considered veterinarians.
- 2019 Wisconsin Act 39 (Assembly Bill 54, For) — Updated requirements for school fire, tornado, and safety drills, indirectly benefiting EMS through stronger school emergency planning.
- 2019 Wisconsin Act 25 (Assembly Bill 427, For) — Made changes to Wisconsin EMS programs administered by DHS, a broader EMS regulatory measure affecting the structure or administration of the state EMS system.
- 2019 Wisconsin Act 132 (Assembly Bill 454, For) — Strengthened penalties for knowingly making false emergency reports, helping reduce dangerous or resource-intensive false responses.
- 2019 Wisconsin Act 26 (Assembly Bill 471, For) — Created grants to help local 911 centers transition to Next Generation 911 technology, improving location information, data sharing, and emergency-call handling.
- 2019 Wisconsin Act 133 (Assembly Bill 472, For) — Created a levy-limit exception for certain costs assessed by a joint EMS department, allowing participating municipalities to fund regional EMS without the entire amount counting against normal levy limits.
- 2019 Wisconsin Act 105 (Assembly Bill 633, Other) — Changed rules governing transportation of people under emergency detention, clarifying who may provide behavioral-health emergency transports.
- 2021 Wisconsin Act 115 (Assembly Bill 297, For) — Strengthened Wisconsin's move-over requirements when emergency or roadside-response vehicles are present, improving safety for EMS crews working alongside traffic.
- 2021 Wisconsin Act 228 (Assembly Bill 874, For) — Increased or otherwise changed Medicaid reimbursement for emergency medical transportation.
- 2021 Wisconsin Act 209 (Assembly Bill 960, For) — Increased criminal penalties for battery or threats against health care providers and health-facility staff.
- 2021 Wisconsin Act 29 (Senate Bill 11, Against) — Made multiple changes to Wisconsin's workers' compensation system, with WEMSA's concern likely related to how the changes affected injured EMS workers, disability claims, benefits, or employer responsibilities.
- 2021 Wisconsin Act 104 (Senate Bill 374, For) — Established and funded a statewide urban search-and-rescue task force and regional emergency-response teams, strengthening specialized response capacity for disasters and complex incidents.
- 2023 Wisconsin Act 176 (Assembly Bill 224, For) — Modified staffing requirements for aircraft ambulances transporting pediatric patients between hospitals.
- 2023 Wisconsin Act 12 (Assembly Bill 245, For) — Overhauled Wisconsin's shared-revenue system and created a dedicated local-government funding structure for police, fire, EMS, public works, and transportation.
- 2023 Wisconsin Act 30 (Senate Bill 157, For) — Established Wisconsin's ambulance assessment program, using assessments on eligible ambulance providers to generate additional federal Medicaid matching funds and supplemental ambulance reimbursements.
- 2023 Wisconsin Act 221 (Senate Bill 218, For) — Created grants for upgrades to interoperable public-safety communication systems, helping EMS communicate with dispatch, hospitals, fire departments, and law enforcement.
- 2023 Wisconsin Act 265 (Senate Bill 222, For) — Created a pre-disaster flood-resilience grant program, with an indirect EMS effect through mitigation of flood risks and improved access.
- 2023 Wisconsin Act 181 (Senate Bill 526, For) — Added representation for rural EMS providers to the Wisconsin EMS Board, giving rural services a more direct voice in statewide EMS policy.
- 2025 Wisconsin Act 145 (Assembly Bill 651, For) — Made broader changes to Wisconsin's workers' compensation law, including expanding PTSD-related workers' compensation eligibility to EMS professionals and volunteer firefighters.
- 2025 Wisconsin Act 161 (Assembly Bill 679, Against) — Increased or modified weight allowances for vehicles transporting grain, feed, or fertilizer. WEMSA's opposition reflected roadway-safety concerns, including crash severity and risks to responders at heavy-vehicle incidents.
- 2025 Wisconsin Act 197 (Assembly Bill 905, For) — Strengthened criminal penalties and legal protections involving threats against health care providers, potentially extending additional protection to EMS clinicians.
- 2025 Wisconsin Act 212 (Senate Bill 181, Against) — Created a levy-limit exemption for regional EMS systems and addressed the expenditure-restraint program. WEMSA opposed the amended bill's eligibility requirements and structure.
- 2025 Wisconsin Act 35 (Senate Bill 182, For) — Expanded EMS education support, including tuition and materials reimbursement for EMRs and EMS practitioners, and established a live-911 training pilot program.
- 2025 Wisconsin Act 36 (Senate Bill 183, For) — Authorized Medicaid reimbursement for qualifying EMS treatment when the patient is not transported, and required reporting concerning EMS scopes of practice.
- 2025 Wisconsin Act 107 (Senate Bill 419, For) — Modified procedures for emergency disease testing of criminal defendants, helping responders obtain timely information following a potential occupational exposure.
- 2025 Wisconsin Act 49 (Senate Bill 422, For) — Named a bridge in memory of Greg Quinn and Larry Millard.
See What WEMSA Is Working On Right Now!
Additionally, a Huge Thank You
None of this happens without people willing to show up, testify, and carry the work forward year after year. WEMSA is grateful to current and past members of our Political Action Committee for their insights and efforts over the years , as well as our Advisors & Liaisons for the time and expertise they bring to these conversations.
A special thank you to Forbes McIntosh, who has served as WEMSA's legislative lobbyist since 1997, which is nearly three decades of steady advocacy for EMS in the Capitol. Much of the progress on this page would not have been possible without that consistency and his expertise. View our current PAC, Advisors, and Liaisons below.
