Hochul vetoes EMS protection bill

A bill named after a fallen EMS officer that would have ensured that no EMS provider in New York City travels alone to the scene of an emergency was vetoed by Governor Kathy Hochul last week.

The Alison Russo EMT Supervisor Staffing Act, named for Lieutenant Alison Russo-Elling, a 24-year FDNY veteran who was stabbed to death by a stranger in September 2022, was passed by the State Senate and Assembly over the summer and would have closed a loophole allowing EMS workers in the city to be dispatched solo.

But Hochul nixed the bill Oct. 16, writing in a memo accompanying her veto that the bill would set “stringent staffing standards” on ambulance and staff supervisor vehicles.

“The safety of our emergency medical service personnel is of critical importance,” Hochul wrote. “However, the requirements set forth in this bill would pose both a fiscal and workforce issue for New York City, which has indicated it would have to reassign emergency medical technicians to supervisory vehicles resulting in fewer ambulances to be in service. New York City would have to hire an additional 290 emergency medical technicians at a cost of $25 million annually to meet these standards, for which no appropriation was provided in this bill.”

Russo-Elling, a first responder to the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks on the World Trade Center, was without a partner the day she was ambushed by Queens resident Peter Zisopoulos about a block and half from her station house in Astoria while she investigated a call for help. Union leaders say that the support of a coworker could have saved her life and have pushed for the bill to be passed and signed.

But the Adams administration lobbied against the bill, citing its concern that the FDNY did not have enough EMS workers to comply with the measure, which would result in fewer ambulances in service citywide, according to a City Hall official.

“Ensuring the safety of New Yorkers is always our top priority, and that means making sure our first responders can reach those in need as quickly and efficiently as possible,” the spokesperson, Kayla Mamalek, said in a statement. “We are immensely grateful to Governor Hochul for heeding our warning about this bill, which would have inevitably led to fewer ambulances on the streets and longer response times for emergency medical services.”

‘Failure of leadership’

Lieutenant paramedic Anthony Almojera, who knew Russo-Elling and is the vice president of the EMS officer's union, said that Hochul’s veto of the bill is “shortsighted and reckless.”

“This legislation would have provided New York City EMS lieutenants and captains with a partner — a basic safety measure already standard for police and fire supervisors,” he said Monday. “The governor’s claim that the bill would cost $25 million a year is simply inaccurate and based on inflated numbers. What this veto really says is that EMS safety and dignity are negotiable — and they shouldn’t be.”

Almojera added that officers operate in unpredictable and “often dangerous” environments. Vetoing the bill is a “failure of leadership and a betrayal of the people who keep this city alive — literally,” he said.

According to the FDNY, there were 187 physical assaults of FDNY EMS members by their patients in 2023 and 258 in 2024. Zisopoulos was sentenced to serve 25 years to life in prison in June after he was convicted of second-degree murder in May.

The bill was sponsored by State Senator Robert Jackson, chair of the committee of Civil Service and Pensions. He said in a statement that the bill was “never just about policy — it was about people.”

“It was about protecting those who protect us, ensuring that every EMT, paramedic, and supervisor has not only the tools but the safety they deserve to do their job and return home to their families,” said Jackson, who represents portions of Manhattan. “This bill was written in the spirit of justice for Lieutenant Alison Russo — whose life was taken in service to others — and for every colleague who continues to serve despite the risks. To veto this bill is to overlook a fundamental truth: those who rush toward danger should never do so alone."

He added that he will “continue to stand shoulder to shoulder with our EMS workers and their unions until the measure becomes law.”

hfreeman@thechiefleader.com