3071

Sudden illness and injury in children within the state of New York are responsible for five percent of all ambulance calls in children under ten years of age, ten percent of all ambulance calls in children under eighteen years of age, twenty-five percent of emergency department visits in urban areas, and forty percent of emergency department visits in rural areas. More than fifty percent of all such emergencies are caused by traumatic injuries, which alone are responsible for more than half of all childhood deaths within the state of New York regardless of cause. The provision of timely and effective emergency medical services for children, including pediatric emergency medical, trauma, and disaster care, are therefore public health priorities of the highest order. It is the purpose and intent of this article to ensure that such services are immediately available to all children within the state of New York.