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[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1042 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>

118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 1042

Recognizing the historical contributions and value of the Freedom House 
                           Ambulance Service.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 29, 2024

Ms. Lee of Pennsylvania (for herself, Ms. Sewell, Mr. Deluzio, Ms. Lee 
  of California, Mr. Carter of Louisiana, Mr. Johnson of Georgia, Ms. 
 Jackson Lee, and Ms. Wild) submitted the following resolution; which 
          was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION

 
Recognizing the historical contributions and value of the Freedom House 
                           Ambulance Service.

Whereas the Freedom House Ambulance Service was the first emergency medical 
        service in the United States to be staffed by paramedics with medical 
        training beyond basic first aid;
Whereas, prior to the mid-1960s, ambulance service in the United States was 
        typically provided by either the police or a local funeral home;
Whereas these services offered little more than transportation and people were 
        dying unnecessarily from treatable illnesses and injuries due to a stark 
        lack of prehospital care;
Whereas, in 1966, the Freedom House Enterprise was founded to provide economic 
        stimulation to the people of Pittsburgh, and specifically those in the 
        predominantly Black Hill District, where a majority of the residents 
        fell well below the poverty line;
Whereas the goal of Freedom House Enterprises was to create job training and 
        employment opportunities for those in the area and to provide an 
        opportunity for those deemed ``unemployable'' by the city welfare 
        offices to train and work in the city;
Whereas, in 1967, Freedom House Enterprises started an ambulance service under 
        the supervision of Dr. Peter Safar, Dr. Dawn Benson, and Dr. Nancy 
        Caroline;
Whereas 24 Black men from the Hill District underwent training to become part of 
        the ambulance team;
Whereas this team was later expanded to include both Black men and Black women;
Whereas Freedom House Ambulance Service broke medical ground by training its 
        personnel to conduct previously unheard of standards of emergency 
        medical care for patients en route to hospitals;
Whereas the paramedic training and ambulance design standards pioneered in the 
        Freedom House Ambulance Service would set the standard for prehospital 
        emergency care nationally and even internationally;
Whereas Freedom House Paramedic Chief John Moon was the first nonphysician to 
        perform an endotracheal intubation in the field;
Whereas the emergency medical services agency would also incorporate many other 
        lifesaving procedures, including treatments for severe asthma attacks, 
        tourniquets for uncontrolled bleeding, and advanced resuscitation 
        techniques for individuals in cardiac arrest;
Whereas Freedom House Ambulance Service was ended in 1975 when a newly elected 
        mayor bent to pressure from the wealthier, White neighborhoods when they 
        questioned why they were receiving inadequate prehospital emergency care 
        compared to low-income, predominantly Black neighborhoods who were 
        receiving state-of-the-art prehospital emergency care; and
Whereas Freedom House Ambulance Service saved countless lives in Pittsburgh's 
        most underserved neighborhoods and served as the blueprint for the 
        Nation's first prehospital care textbook and the first set of national 
        standards for emergency medical services: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) commends and recognizes the invaluable work and 
        enduring legacy of the Freedom House Ambulance Service, their 
        dedication to serving their community, and their contributions 
        to prehospital emergency care;
            (2) acknowledges the vital role played by the Freedom House 
        Ambulance Service in revolutionizing prehospital emergency 
        services and therefore saving countless lives; and
            (3) expresses sincere gratitude to each member of the 
        Freedom House Ambulance Service for their unwavering commitment 
        to community service and their remarkable contributions to the 
        city of Pittsburgh and prehospital emergency medical care 
        across the country.
                                 <all>
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