Medical Emergency Telephone Call Center Bill, 5783-2022

The bill mandates the establishment of a national medical emergency telephone call center that will operate continuously throughout the year. Calls to the center will be made via a short-dial number and will be free of charge. The purpose of the center is to provide responses to telephone inquiries regarding the provision of primary medical care and first aid, as well as to dispatch responders to provide such care. The Minister of Health will appoint a supervisor for the center, who will oversee its operations, investigate irregularities, handle public inquiries, and manage the responder registry. The supervisor may request information and documents from relevant entities and authorize Ministry of Health employees to act on their behalf. The center will be headed by a director, approved by the Director General of the Ministry of Health. Their duties include ensuring the competence of call center operators, ensuring the proper functioning of the center and its technological system, reporting irregularities, and providing information. The center will be staffed by operators trained in medical emergencies. The bill mandates the management of a responder registry classified by professional category (medic, nurse, paramedic, physician). A responder may be registered if they are a medical professional, belong to a recognized medical aid organization (such as Magen David Adom or United Hatzalah), meet training and experience requirements, have declared possession of life-saving equipment, and have not been convicted of relevant offenses. The registry will serve as the basis for dispatching responders via the technological system. The Director General will recognize certificates of emergency medics and paramedics and will set conditions for completing additional training or examinations for recognition. Medical aid organizations (such as Magen David Adom) will be responsible for the orderly intake of responders, verifying their training, supervising their activities, providing professional guidance, checking equipment integrity, and arranging responder insurance. These organizations will submit requests to the supervisor for registering responders in the registry and will update details. The bill stipulates that the supervisor of the center will remove a responder from the registry if the responder requests it, if they cease to belong to a medical aid organization, or if it is found that the details provided in the registration are incorrect or that the responder has breached their duties. The supervisor may remove a responder temporarily or permanently if it is found that the details provided are incorrect or that they have breached their duties. The center will dispatch registered responders to provide primary medical care at the scene of an incident. Dispatching responders will be based solely on professional criteria, taking into account availability, accessibility, training, and equipment. A responder's departure to an incident is voluntary, and they will not receive financial compensation. The responder who arrives first at the scene will manage it, document their arrival and the treatment provided, and report to the center. Responders will wear appropriate identification while active. The bill mandates the establishment of a technological system that will alert responders to the need to arrive at an incident scene and allow for reporting on arrival and treatment provided. Every registered responder will be able to connect to this system. Information obtained by those involved in providing primary medical care or in carrying out the provisions of the law will be kept confidential and will not be used except for the purpose of implementing the law. The Minister of Health will be authorized to enact regulations regarding the recognition of medical aid organizations, the method of operating the center, the training of the center director, methods of communication with responders, the deployment of responders, communication and technology systems, data protection, and supervision of the center's work.

Source: הצעת חוק לדיון מוקדם