Code Blue Vetoes
Dear Editor: The final round of vetoes by the governor also included one that gets little mention in the main news articles but has a huge impact on rural Emergency Medical Services. He vetoed the funding for the Code Blue Project, which has been a rock-solid grant program in the state for 19 straight years and supported strongly by both the House and Senate. There are very few communities in the state that hasn’t benefited from Code Blue during that time period.
The Code Blue (CB) Project began in the late 1990s as aging or non-existent emergency medical equipment and transportation needs became acute. The $500,000 provided annually by the state was used as ‘‘seed’’ money for other grants, loans and local matches in order to purchase essential EMS equipment across the state. The application eligibility determination and award processes are one of the most stringent in the state in order to guarantee that grant awards are given based on NEED not WANT regardless of the legislative district or political leanings.
During its 19 years of existence, the state contributed $7,757,000, the USDA $8,830,000, the Denali Commission $1,561,000, the Rasmuson Foundation $1,226,000, which was combined with local community matches of $4,873,000, to provide a total of $27,795,321 of EMS patient care, training, transportation and communication equipment. The state funds comprised roughly 25% of the total dollars contributed to the project.
With the vetoing of the ‘‘seed’’ money, the CB program will come to a halt and with the cost of an average ambulance, delivered to the bush, being nearly $180,000 each and the cardiac monitor/defibrillators costing $35,000, this will be devastating to rural EMS services – many without a tax base.
Four late 1990s model ambulances across the state were approved for replacement in 2020 with a plan to utilize the ‘‘capped’’ state CB dollars for each of $55,000 as match money in order to seek other funding partners to complete the unmet need. Now, that option no longer exists.
Gov. Dunleavy used the following phrase “budget changes are not meant to harm Alaska or Alaskans” in his video statement but in this case it not only harms Alaskan residents but the millions of visitors to the state who expect and depend on EMS in their communities. Without the funding this year alone, 19 rural communities in the Interior Region (Fairbanks area), eight in the North Slope region, 17 in Norton Sound region, 14 in the Southern Region (Anchorage area), six in the Southeast region and 17 in the Yukon Kuskokwim region will not be able to add to or replace their capital equipment needs. How is this NOT going to harm Alaska?
Bobbi Leichty, Sitka
