Council Connect Articles

Wall Time Discussions Continue with Cosumnes Fire Department

Who

  • Pat Hume, Sacramento County Supervisor
  • Darren Suen, Chief of Staff to Assembly Member Stephanie Nguyen
  • Felipe Rodriguez, Fire Chief, Cosumnes Fire Department 
  • Sacramento County Emergency Medical Services Agency (SCEMSA) officials
  • Cosumnes Community Services District officials

What

In October, Cosumnes Fire Chief Felipe Rodriguez reached out to Assembly Member Stephanie Nguyen to garner support for potential new legislation to fix “wall times,” which are the length of time ambulances sit on the wall while waiting for patients to be discharged from their ambulance to the hospital. This prompted Assembly Member Nguyen to call a meeting with Cosumnes Fire Chief Rodriguez, SCEMSA officials, and Hospital Council and CHA staff to discuss the situation and potential legislative action.

Preceding the meeting, CHA staff connected with Assembly Member Nguyen and set the context by pointing to the enactment of Assembly Bill 40 and Senate Bill 767 just this month to address elements of the Cosumnes Fire Department’s concern.

Given their enactment, Assembly Member Nguyen determined that there was no need to carry another bill and handed off leadership of the Oct. 18 meeting to Sacramento County Supervisor Hume to discuss how the new legislation would be implemented collaboratively within the county.

Takeaway / Next Steps

SCEMSA and Hospital Council staff redirected group energy to discuss a variety of process improvements as a potential scope of work for the next year or beyond. County officials declined to take punitive approaches. Further collaboration will continue at the community level.