Medical Transport Advertising, Marketing, and Brokering

Reaffirmed October 2023

Revised October 2017 with current title

Originally approved June 2008 titled "Air Ambulance Medical Transport Advertising and Marketing" 

A joint policy statement of the American College of Emergency Physicians, the National Association of EMS Physicians^®, the Air Medical Physician Association, the Association of Air Medical Services, and the National Association of State EMS Officials

Patient care and outcomes are optimized by using medical transport services that are officially recognized by the appropriate regulatory health care authority and have robust physician medical oversight and ongoing quality management. Only medical transport services with these credentials should advertise and/or market themselves as providing medical transport services. Brokers should not advertise as medical transport services and must identify themselves as brokers, admitting that another entity completes the transport and providing transparency regarding their involvement with arranging the transport.

Recommendations:

• Every national and state regulatory authority should develop statutes regulating the advertising and/or marketing of medical transport services.
• These statutes should only allow an entity to advertise and/or market as a medical transport service if the entity possesses a valid medical transport license or certification.
• These statutes should require brokers to disclose their role in arranging the transport and inform the client at the time the transport is arranged which licensed medical transport service will complete the transport, including providing the name, contact information, and licensure/certification information of that medical transport service.
• Active emergency medical services (EMS) physician medical oversight and ongoing performance improvement through quality management must be a required component of medical transport service licensure/certification.