June 22, 2010

Our view: Cheating EMTs violated the public's trust

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There's more evidence the scandal involving the false certification of emergency medical technicians went well beyond the town of Hamilton, whose former police chief is among those currently awaiting trial on charges related to the alleged fraud.

In Massachusetts, EMTs must attend 24 to 36 hours of classes every two years in order to maintain their licenses. But a recent investigation by the state Department of Public Health found that more than 200 EMTs across the state working for 10 private and 14 municipal ambulance services had falsified their training records.

Included in that number were 30 Haverhill firefighters and 35 employees of the private Trinity EMS ambulance service, which operates in the Merrimack Valley.

Under the scheme, recertification trainers provided false documentation to the state stating that the EMTs had completed the training without their actually having attended the classes.

According to an affidavit filed in the investigation, Haverhill firefighter Jeff Given collected money from and obtained the signatures of other Haverhill firefighters on official attendance rosters.

Given gave the money and rosters to Trinity paramedic Leo Nault, who is a recertification trainer, in a downtown parking lot, the document stated. Given and three other "facilitators" worked with Nault in obtaining falsified training documents.

Nault admitted charging basic EMTs $50 and paramedics $125 for the falsified documents, according to the affidavit.