Firefighters Now Respond to Fewer Medical Calls Than They Did Before COVID-19

Last week, the union representing Portland firefighters agreed to renegotiate a three-year labor contract, giving up millions in previously agreed upon pay increases ("This Is Not a Drill," WW, May 13, 2020). That remarkable concession was more difficult because firefighters noted they were on the front line of COVID-19 response.

There's little doubt firefighters have dangerous jobs. At Portland Fire & Rescue, however, responding to medical calls is most of the work. Firefighters respond to about 5,000 such calls every month, versus about 350 fires. Many of the medical calls are for routine, non-emergency matters.

But figures WW obtained through a public records request also show this: Firefighters are responding to significantly fewer medical calls now than they were before the pandemic.
Such medical calls dropped off in March as the stay-home orders took hold, and plummeted more than 18 percent from levels last April. (Fire calls held fairly steady.) In addition to people staying put, officials think a more judicious use of 911 helps explain the drop.

Robyn Burek, a fire bureau analyst, says in March the bureau began ceding some sick calls to American Medical Response: "The fewer people we can send into a potentially contagious situation the better for everyone."