N.H. attorney general investigates hospital’s plan to end ALS intercept [Video]

By Shawne WickhamThe New Hampshire Union Leade

EXETER, N.H. — Seacoast-area fire departments have been sounding the alarm after Exeter Hospital notified them it was abruptly ending a program that sends paramedics to medical emergencies when advanced critical care is needed.

Now the Attorney General’s Office has stepped in.

For more than three decades, Exeter Hospital’s Advanced Life Support (ALS) Program has served surrounding communities by dispatching paramedics in an “intercept” vehicle to critical medical emergencies such as car crashes and cardiac arrests.

Paramedics are the highest level of first responders licensed by the state Bureau of Emergency Medical Services. While larger communities typically have their own paramedics, the intercept program has provided that level of care for smaller communities.

But towns that contract with Exeter Hospital were notified on Sept. 10 that the ALS intercept program would end on Sept 20. Hospital officials said they made the decision to end the program and lay off its paramedics as a cost-cutting measure.

The short notice …