Re: “She called 911 for an ambulance. She got a nightmare instead” (March 8, A1) and “How Seattle’s 911 ambulance system and nurse line stack up” (March 9, A1):
I read with horror about how, since 2022, Seattle officials have permitted Seattle’s Nurse Navigation program operated by the for-profit ambulance contractor American Medical Response zero contractual penalties for delays in ambulance service, and zero need for the Fire Department to document how long the rides end up taking. Tragically, it is no surprise that Pamela Hogan was found dead after her ambulance finally arrived after 10 hours only to leave due to no contact after Hogan called 911 multiple times with increasing urgency.
Before 2022, the average high-urgency 911 call ambulance response time was 11 ½ minutes, with the average low-urgency response time almost an hour. Yet now there is “no standard” available for any categories of ambulance response times for Seattle?
How many more people have already quietly died and how many more will die in the future due to this tragic loophole? Our leaders must revisit this urgent lapse in oversight and return our city to its prior high standards. What happened to Pamela Hogan shows us this is a life-or-death matter.
Annette Peizer, Seattle
