§ 3071. Declaration of purpose. 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.