NYC EMS teams instructed not to bring cardiac arrest patients to hospital if no pulse is found after administering CPR

CNN — New York City Emergency Medical Service teams who cannot find or restart a pulse while administering CPR on adult cardiac arrest patients have been instructed not to bring those patients to hospitals to mitigate the risk of Covid-19 exposure to EMS workers, according to a memo obtained by CNN and the chair of the regional emergency medical advisory committee familiar with the edict. If the New York Police Department response is delayed, EMS teams are instructed to call the police department’s Dead on Arrival Removal teams, according to the memo. Josef Schenker Chair of the New York City Regional Emergency Medical Advisory Committee – which issued the memo – explains that the patients that fall into this category – cardiac arrest patients who fail to regain pulse after CPR in the field – are less likely to be revived and transporting them puts EMS workers at risk. The director of communications for the New York State Health Department Jonah Bruno, said the department “has not issued, or approved, any such guidance but we are working with EMS providers throughout the state to ensure the health and safety of all New Yorkers, as we mount a coordinated response to the Covid-19 pandemic.” The NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene deferred to the state health department when asked about the memo.