David Cook testifies for EMS PAC on staffing and pay crisis

Sorry to do this, I'm sorry.

First of all, I just want to say good afternoon.

My name is David Cook.

I represent EMS PAC.

I'm a paramedic and I'm also an active lieutenant with the Fire Department of New York City.

Before we start, I want to say thank you to everybody in this room.

The reason I'm saying thank you to everybody in this room is because I know what it's like to pick up patients who have disabilities and I want to tell everybody with disabilities, you are superheroes and you are inspiration to me and others and I want to say thank you for that.

I know it's hard for you with disabilities, but I tell you, I respect you.

I also...

I'm sorry.

Go ahead.

Yeah, the EMS.

EMS?

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Please continue.

No, no, it's okay.

It's all right.

I also want to thank you guys as well because you guys, by making sure these elderly people get the money that they need, I know what it's like for these elderly patients who have Alzheimer's and other diseases, and they don't even have people to help them.

So the fact that you guys are going to be able to give them more income is phenomenal.

I want to say thank you.

The reason why we're all here is these are a bunch of FDNY EMTs and paramedics and a bunch of Hospital 911 EMTs and paramedics, and they're super here.

I want to say thank you to everybody on this panel.

I represent EMS PAC.

We're a nonprofit organization.

You can follow us on Instagram or Facebook.

The reason why we're here and we're here in numbers is because New York City has a crisis and it's an emergency.

And I'm being very honest.

I didn't come here just to talk lollygag stuff.

I'm being honest with you guys from the heart now.

The truth is we do not have enough ambulances out there on the streets.

I've been with, let me give you my background first.

I became an EMT in 2006.

I worked in New Jersey for Nationwide Ambulance and also Bell and Mobile Vital.

I became an FDNY EMT in 2008.

I became a paramedic in 2010.

I got upgraded with FDNY as a paramedic in 2011.

I also won numerous EMS competitions.

I was a paramedic instructor for New York Methodist Hospital, and I'm currently a paramedic instructor for LaGuardia College right now.

So anybody who wants to be an EMT and paramedic, I suggest you come to LaGuardia, and I want to say thank you to my colleagues.

At LaGuardia because they're phenomenal instructors.

The reason why we're here is because I know what it's like to have to be in Brooklyn, and they'll call me for a cardiac arrest.

That means somebody's heart is not beating.

Now, I'm going to break things down simple.

You have a bunch of cells in your body, right?

And guess what?

In four to six minutes, when your heart stops, those cells start to die.

And guess what?

When somebody's in Brooklyn and there's a cardiac arrest in Staten Island or there's a cardiac arrest in the Bronx and there's not enough ambulances, we need you guys on the council to help fix this because we also advocate for the public.

Now, the big thing that while we're here, too, is because we have issues beyond just not the retention rate.

The fact that we don't even have budget to get equipment.

Kathy Hochul passed a bill for $50 million to get passed.

I'm going to keep going out of your respect and my colleagues as well.

Kathy Hochul passed a bill for $50 million for EMS, and the firefighters took that bill, and they took the money and used it for their equipment.

We do not have the right resources or the right enough manpower to get to you guys.

And because of these issues with the low pay on top of that, I'm telling you guys right now, this is the emergency why we're here for New York City.

EMS is having talks now, and this is in all garages, every station to station, all the five boroughs.

We do not care about the Taylor Law Act, and EMS people are talking, and they are considering to strike.

And this is for Mandami and for City Council.

And I'm telling you guys right now, you do not have enough resources as it is right now.

People in New York City are dying every day.

So I want to thank you.

I want you to put yourself in the situation.

We're going to speak and be honest now.

I want everybody to wake up.

I don't care about egos.

The truth is, you go down right now.

You want to hit the clock?

Call 911 and say somebody's heart stopped.

I bet you it's going to be 10 to 15 minutes.

FDNY's been lying up here with their stats.

It's not five to six minutes.

There's not enough ambulances and people are dying in New York City.

Guess who has to take the loss?

It's us.

We take it home because we care about saving you guys.

So I'm telling city council, we had to crash the party because there's an emergency going on.

Yes, NEMS.

And this is for Mandami and all of you.

No disrespect, but it's for all of you and your colleagues.

I'm speaking to the people.

You took an oath.

If somebody takes a flight from Florida to come see New York City for the first time and they drop dead, 20 minutes for an ambulance, 30 minutes for an ambulance.

Imagine getting a cardiac arrest right here going to the Bronx.

How long do you think it's going to take for me to get there?

People are dying in New York City.

And I want to address FDNY personally.

FDNY is run by Commissioner Lillian Bonsignor, who under her administration was hired by Mandami.

Guess what?

She hasn't done anything.

She was the reason why COVID, hold on one second, please.

She was the reason why COVID situations happen and other things.

And I just want to say, no, no, thank you, thank you, thank you.

Please respect other people's time.

I understand your concern.

And also, we will address your issue later.

And this is for this hearing for senior.

I personally really appreciate all the EMS workers.

And as a council member and with my colleagues, we also...

understand EMS doesn't pay enough.

EMS worker did not pay enough.

Your salary is very low.

For me, it's a big issue.

But today we have hearing on screen and the tree.

We will have a separate, probably have separate hearing or something to address this issue.

Thank you.

Councilmember, with all due respect, the reason why all of us are here is that the understaffing of EMS is leaving older and disabled New Yorkers highly vulnerable.

As David was mentioning, there are not enough ambulances in the system.

I've been an EMT for three years, and the response times are only increasing.

It is incredibly difficult for us when we have to respond to

a potentially life-threatening emergency, and we're half an hour away, and we know that person might not make it by the time we get there.

They might be in a really unstable or potentially unsalvageable condition.

All of us, you know, we don't want to...

How do I say this mildly?

There are simply not enough ambulances, EMTs, paramedics in the system to properly take care of people.

And that is leaving New Yorkers vulnerable to a wide variety of conditions.

We believe that there needs to be way more increase in training, increase of

staffing for all EMS personnel, because the reason is right now for understaffed or normal operation level, think about when there's a crisis, when there's a natural disaster like a flood,

a pandemic, a terrorist attack, then New Yorkers are going to be even more vulnerable to death.

Thank you for your time.

Sorry, if I could just interject also, because I don't know if you all were at the finance hearing, the executive committee hearing in May,

but there was, I would say, probably the longest portion of the testimony was focused on a lot of our EMS workers and how important pay parity is and salaries are.

And I have to say the...

The folks that were head of the agencies actually gave a very, in case you guys were all planning on saying this, because we do want to try to stick to screedry, but

they actually gave us very insightful information on exactly what you were saying about calls, ambulances having to be shifted around, and if one moves here, then there's a lack of one here, and then if there's a call here, and what that does in terms of response time.

And as former chair of mental health disabilities and addictions, be heard was something that was very important to me as a social worker.

I totally understand.

I actually went to the site in Bay Terrace that does the trainings in Fort Totten, and I have to say that was very eye-opening as well.

And so I understand the outreach teams are super, super critical.

And so that is something that I just wanted to emphasize that on the council we've really been trying to fight for is increasing the salary levels of our EMT and EMS workers because we know how valuable you are.

So I just wanted to say that up front because I know that, you know, for the public test.

testimony portion, we do want to try to stick it to the topic.

But maybe if the chairs are okay, if we can maybe briefly have you just go through what you had written and then just respect the two minute time if possible.

Please only two minutes every time, every person, and also please stick on the topic.

I understand your frustration.

I'm with you.

But today we are more focused on screen energy.

Thank you.