We regret to inform you of the passing of Robert (Bob) Hawkins.

Bob was employed with the EMS Division from 1972 until 1988 and was the Mid-Cumberland Regional EMS Consultant for over fourteen years. He retired from the State EMS Division in 1988 to become Service Director of Sumner County EMS.   In the early eighties, he established EMT and Paramedic staffing at Opryland Theme Park First Aid, where many middle Tennessee EMS personnel shared part-time jobs. He also served as a manager for Ambulance Services Inc. (ASI) in the 1990's and traveled for several years to conduct CPR and AED training courses.

First Visitation: Wednesday,  May 23rd 2012 - 4:00pm - 7:00pm

Williamson Memorial Funeral Home - 3009 Columbia Ave - Franklin, TN

Second Visitation: Thursday, May 24th 2012 - 1:00pm - 2:00pm

Hillcrest United Methodist Church - 5112 Raywood Lane - Nashville, TN

Service Information: Thursday, May 24th 2012 at 2:00pm

Hillcrest United Methodist Church - 5112 Raywood Lane - Nashville, TN

Interment Information: Williamson Memorial Gardens - 3009 Columbia Ave - Franklin, TN

Thank you for the opportunity to represent the Tennessee Ambulance Service Association. Our team is proud to provide you with our final report of, yet another, successful year! The second session of the 107th General Assembly adjourned sine die on Tuesday, May 1, 2012. The main theme of this legislative session was efficiency, which was marked by the earliest adjournment in 14 years.

The highlights of this legislative session included: legislative and congressional redistricting; constitutional amendments and, of course, passage of the 2012-2013 budget for the State of Tennessee. A brief summary of the major highlights of our work at Legislative Plaza and the key events which were most relevant to the Tennessee Ambulance Service Association, are included below. Please feel free to call on us any time if you require additional information regarding all of the happenings on Capitol Hill during the 2012 legislative session.

The McMahan-Winstead TASA summary report can be accessed by clicking here.

SB 2245 passed the Senate yesterday with a unanimous vote!

This is the TNCare appropriations bill that increases payments by 1.5% and removes the $2 co-pay provision that had been added. While this is not a huge victory, it is certainly a step in the right direction. I want to thank everyone who placed calls to your Senator requesting help on this bill. Without your calls, and Beth’s hard work, this bill would have likely failed.

Thanks again,

Brandon Ward - TASA President

Tennessee End of Life Partnership is conducting a survey on the use of the POST Form and advance care planning in Tennessee. Since the Health Care Decisions Act was passed in 2004, there has not been an evaluation of Tennessee’s progress.  We would appreciate your time in completing our survey.  We will share the outcomes of the survey with all Tennessee facilities and anyone who may be interested.

Thanks in advance for your help.

Follow this link to take the survey

Sincerely, 
Judy Eads RN
President of TELP

This week's legislative report - click here.

A rule making hearing will be held during the upcoming State EMS Board meeting scheduled for March 29 & 30, 2012 regarding the scope of practice for the upcoming license classification changes.

TASA is in the process of reviewing these changes and would like to hear your thoughts. Please email your thoughts/concerns to Vice-President Chad Graham at This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it

View the rule making notice  

See photos and details by clicking on the "Awards Program" menu.

Jimmy Studdard EMT Award - John Barry

Larry Griffin Paramedic Award - Vicki Messer

Bob Thomas ALS Service Award - Memphis Fire Dept.

John Bond Administrator Award - Jeanne Yeateman

Tommy Erwin Lifetime Achievement Award - Chief Steven Meador

Dr. C. Robert Clark EMS Medical Director Award - Dr. Joseph Holley

L. Gale Allen President's Leadership Award - Mike Shankle

Special Recognition Award - David Kelley

Below are the topics that were presented by Fitch & Associates at the recent Mid-Winter Conference:

Advanced Economics

How and Why EMS Providers Get Replaced

Public Relations & Communicating System Achievements

Supervising the Supervisor

What's Next

You can also access these from the "Downloads" link in the main menu.

 The 2012 Southeastern EMS Director's Association Conference will be March 29 - 30, 2012 at the Chattanooga Choo-Choo. This year's keynote speaker is Randolph Mantooth. For more information, go to www.seemsda.org

Conference Brochure