Opinion editor's note: Editorials represent the opinions of the Star Tribune Editorial Board, which operates independently from the newsroom.
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It's a testament to Minnesota's hardworking ambulance crews that the public so often takes for granted the extraordinary service they provide — rapidly responding to medical emergencies with expertise and equipment no matter the time or day.
It's a feat made even more remarkable by this state's extreme weather and its geography, with miles of fields or forest often stretching between a crew's starting point and those in crisis. Even so, it's nearly unthinkable that an ambulance's flashing lights would not arrive on the scene quickly after a call comes in for help.
But ambulance crews' dedication is masking two serious challenges that are especially acute in rural Minnesota. One is recruiting and retaining ambulance staffers, some of whom volunteer their time in rural communities.
The second is funding a 24/7 public service that, unlike police and fire departments, isn't primarily supported by tax dollars but instead is expected to cover its own costs by billing patients, and even fundraising if necessary.
Unfortunately, the demographic realities of the areas served by rural ambulance crews — populations that are too often shrinking and aging — make current models for providing this service unsustainable. While there are valiant efforts underway across the state to innovate and fill service gaps, the strain needs to be better understood by the public and policymakers.
"In response to our survey, 61 percent of outstate service directors reported that during the previous month they had difficulty staffing ambulance shifts at the level needed to adequately respond to 911 calls," a report from Minnesota's Office of the Legislative Auditor (OLA) concluded earlier this year. "Severe staffing shortages have sometimes led ambulance services to be unable to respond to calls from their primary service areas."