2025 COUNCIL STUDY ISSUE
NUMBER
Title
DPS 25-01
TITLE Evaluate the Addition of Paramedic Services to Supplement the County Provided Services for Sunnyvale Residents and Businesses
BACKGROUND
Lead Department:
Department of Public Safety
Support Departments:
Office of the City Manager
Office of the City Attorney
Finance Department
Sponsor(s):
Councilmembers: Klein, Srinivasan, Din, Sell, Melton, Mehlinger
History:
1 year ago: N/A
2 years ago: N/A
Council Strategic Priority:
No
(At time of sponsorship)
SCOPE OF THE STUDY
What precipitated this study?
At the July 23, 2024, City Council meeting, Mayor Klein sponsored a Study Issue to evaluate the addition of Paramedic Services. The Study Issue was co-sponsored by Councilmembers Srinivasan, Din, Sell, Melton, and Mehlinger. Currently, paramedic services for the City of Sunnyvale are provided by Santa Clara County Emergency Medical Services Agency at no cost to the City, funded through a combination of taxes and fees for service. This service is also provided to all other agencies within the county except Palo Alto.
What are the key elements of the study?
The Department of Public Safety (DPS) is a fully integrated public safety department that provides Police, Fire, and EMS services to the Sunnyvale community. All sworn Public Safety Officers (PSOs) are certified Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT), capable of providing basic life support services (BLS). For advanced life support services (ALS), which require a higher level of care, County paramedics are dispatched. Additionally, Sunnyvale benefits from two Quick Response Vehicles (QRV) staffed by paramedics from AMR. These QRVs enhance the City's emergency response capabilities by delivering ALS services alongside County ambulances.
The Study would assess the feasibility of adding City paramedic services to augment County services. It would explore various models for delivering paramedic care, examine operational expenses associated with each model, a...
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