The following outlines an administrative policy change that went into effect earlier this year pertaining to 15-year-olds being allowed to enroll in an EMT course.
Student Age
All students enrolled in a Basic Life Support (BLS) EMS course shall be at least 16 years of age by the end date of the course as announced to OEMS. Students 15 years of age must apply for a variance before the program begins in order to be considered for eligibility to enroll in the course.
Students Under 16
The variance process for 15-year-olds should be started as soon as the student expresses interest in the course as the process cannot be completed in one or two days.
The Variance Process Detailed
Step: 1— The Education Coordinator (EC) must have already announced the course that the student is planning to enroll in to allow the variance to be submitted.
Step: 2— The EC must provide the student/s [those under 16 years of age] with the PIN number for the course and request that the student submit their enrollment application.
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- The enrollment process will most likely occur BEFORE the rest of your students enroll due to the fact that the 15-year-old will have been excogitating well in advance due to the variance approval process.
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Step: 3— Contact Debbie once the application has been submitted to allow her to accept the enrollment so a certification number can be assigned to the student.
Step: 4-– Have the student complete a variance request at the following link: Variance Request Form using the certification number that has been assigned to the student.
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- Letters of support from the Educator, the parent or legal guardian and a school representative (guidance counselor, etc.) must be sent to Ron Passmore, Director of Regulation & Compliance as soon as possible—ron.passmore@vdh.virginia.gov.
- The variance process can take as long as 30-days for a decision and must be approved prior to the start date of your course.
- Per standard policy, students, regardless of age, shall meet all BLS student requirements as specified in the OEMS Regulations. These will be reviewed with students and verified on the first day of the course.
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All students who do not meet the Age of Majority in the Commonwealth shall have a signed OEMS Parental Permission Form, EMS.TR 07, on file before the start of the course.