The Minnesota Office of Emergency Medical Services (OEMS) is accepting applications for its Ambulance Service Training & Staffing Grant.
Donor Name: Minnesota Office of Emergency Medical Services (OEMS)
State: Minnesota
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 10/17/2025
Size of the Grant: More than $1 million
Grant Duration: 1 Year
Details:
The purpose of the Ambulance Service Training and Staffing Grant program (AST&S) is to support Minnesota ambulance services in the development of or expansion of existing “Earn While You learn recruitment programs.”
These types of programs aim to address critical workforce shortages by making emergency medical technician (EMT) training more accessible and financially feasible for prospective candidates. These programs allow individuals to receive paid on-the-job training while completing the required education and certification to become EMTs. By reducing financial barriers and providing immediate income, the initiative attracts a broader and more diverse applicant pool, accelerates the entry of new EMTs into the workforce, and strengthens the overall stability and readiness of the EMS system to respond to community needs.
These grants will provide eligible ambulance services funding for certain costs to train ambulance service employees as EMTs and staff the ambulance service.
Funding Information
- There is $2 million dollars available for this grant program.
- The term of the initial AST&S grant period is anticipated to be from January 1, 2026, through December 30, 2026.
Allowable Costs
An ambulance service must use grant money awarded under this section only for one or more of the following:
- EMT education program tuition.
- EMT certification exam fees.
- Background study fees for new EMT employees.
- Wage and benefit costs of employees while attending an EMT education program or program-related activities. Wage and benefit costs under this clause must be commensurate with the wages and benefits the ambulance service provides to an entry-level EMT and must not exceed $26 per hour
Eligibility Criteria
The purpose of this grant program is to support ambulance services that rely significantly on EMTs thereby strengthening this segment of the EMS workforce pipeline. To be eligible for a grant under this section, an ambulance service must:
- be licensed under Minnesota Statutes,
- in the calendar year prior to the year in which the ambulance service first applies for a grant under this section, have had at least 50 percent of its ambulance staffing provided by emergency medical technicians.
To determine compliance with this requirement, the Office of EMS (OEMS) will evaluate ambulance services based on either of the following two criteria. A service is eligible if it meets at least one:
- Roster-Based Requirement: At least 50% of the EMS personnel listed on the service’s eLicense electronic roster are certified at the EMT level.
- Response-Based Requirement: At least 50% of the EMS responses during the previous calendar year, as reported in the Minnesota State Ambulance Reporting System (MNSTAR), included an EMT listed on the patient care report.
For more information, visit OEMS.
