Federal EMS Committee Seeks Input on Nationwide Prehospital Blood Transfusion

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is requesting comments on strategies, barriers and solutions to advance prehospital blood transfusion nationwide.

NHTSA issued the request for information on behalf of the Federal Interagency Committee on Emergency Medical Services (FICEMS), which coordinates federal agencies involved with state, local, tribal and regional emergency medical services (EMS) and 911 systems. FICEMS aims to support EMS systems in preventing up to 10,000 deaths annually and achieving a 5% reduction in overall mortality from severe bleeding by 2028.

The request seeks input on meeting the following national goals by the end of 2028:

• Increasing the number of EMS agencies with active prehospital blood transfusion programs to 2,028.
• Providing 911 pre-arrival instructions to 25% of pediatric patients and 25% of all patients with life-threatening bleeding.
• Administering prehospital blood transfusions to 28% of pediatric patients and 16% of all patients with life-threatening bleeding.

The notice also seeks comments on the potential role of crash notification technology and structured 911 call-taking protocols in improving care for patients with life-threatening bleeding. Other questions address data integration across local, state and national systems; military and civilian EMS integration, including cold-chain management; and EMS education and training in transfusion medicine.

Interested individuals can submit comments online. The deadline is Nov. 5.