BALTIMORE — Maryland emergency medical officials are urging EMS clinicians to consider returning non-critical patients to hospitals where they were recently treated, a move aimed at improving continuity of care and easing overcrowding in emergency departments.
In a memo dated Jan. 26, 2026, the Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical Services Systems advised clinicians to ask patients whether they have been admitted to a hospital within the past 30 days if their condition does not require time-critical intervention. If so, providers are encouraged to make reasonable efforts to transport those patients back to the same facility, provided it does not add more than 30 minutes of additional transport time.
State EMS officials said the guidance is not a mandate and does not override clinical judgment or existing destination protocols.
Officials said patients often benefit from returning to a familiar hospital, where medical staff have access to recent records and treatment history. Repatriation should be weighed alongside other factors, including specialty care needs, time sensitivity and available system data.
The guidance comes as emergency departments across Maryland continue to experience heavy crowding. Officials noted that patients taken to an emergency department that is not well suited to their needs may spend hours or days waiting for transfer, contributing to delays in care and prolonged EMS handoffs.
“Getting patients to the right place initially is most appropriate,” the memo states.
The advisory was distributed statewide to EMS clinicians.
Read the memo below:
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