NEW YORK, N.Y. — City Council members questioned FDNY leaders Tuesday about why ambulances are taking far longer to reach New Yorkers in life-threatening emergencies, after a city comptroller report found response times have climbed sharply over the past decade.
The comptroller compared 2026 with 2015 and found that the average response to life-threatening calls grew by 3 minutes and 50 seconds, an increase of more than 40%. For emergencies that are not life-threatening, the average wait more than doubled, reaching 14 minutes and 49 seconds. The report pointed to high turnover among EMTs and paramedics, pay, staffing in busy areas and the condition of the ambulance fleet as problems that all need attention.
Council Speaker Julie Menin described the state of the city EMS workforce as a crisis, saying crews are both short-handed and underpaid. Health Committee Chair Lynn Schulman argued that the official numbers understate the delay, because they measure arrival at the street address rather than the moment crews actually reach the patient.
Department officials told the council that rising call volume and fewer available ambulances are driving the slowdown. They also cited recruiting trouble and low pay since the pandemic, and the loss of 19 hospitals across New York since 2003, which forces longer trips. FDNY Chief John Esposito said the department has to do better, and the FDNY said in a statement that it considers the trend unacceptable.
The department said it plans to grow its EMS ranks, fix communication gaps with the Police Department during calls and work with hospitals so they accept patients quickly. Councilwoman Joann Ariola plans a bill that would have New York City Emergency Management send out an alert whenever more than 25 ambulance calls are waiting to be dispatched at once.
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Filed under: New York NY Public Safety News
