Paramedic coverage for Andover and North Andover residents isn't changing, but the organization behind basic ambulance operations in neighboring Lawrence just did.

Merrimack Health announced it has handed off basic life support ambulance operations in Lawrence to Cataldo Ambulance Service, effective July 9, according to the Andover Townsman. The deal includes 911 dispatch for the city of Lawrence. Merrimack Health's paramedics and advanced life support services remain in-house for Lawrence, North Andover, Andover, and Methuen.

For Andover and North Andover, the practical effect is continuity. Lawrence Hospital paramedics who respond to calls in both towns remain hospital employees. That includes the whole blood transfusion program, which allows paramedics to administer blood to critically injured patients in the field within a 30-mile radius of Lawrence. Lawrence Hospital was the second EMS provider in Massachusetts to achieve that capability, launching the program in December 2024 after an 18-month state evaluation, according to EMS1.

Diana Richardson, Merrimack Health president and CEO, said the partnership bolsters regional EMS response while preserving the clinical capabilities patients rely on. "By partnering with Cataldo, we are strengthening our region's EMS response, supporting our dedicated workforce, and building on the advanced clinical capabilities that our patients rely on every day," Richardson said in the release.

The ambulance service employs about 30 paramedics and 30 emergency medical technicians. Lawrence Hospital EMS employees will transition to Cataldo as employees, preserving workforce continuity. Dispatch operations will stay physically located at Lawrence Hospital.

Cataldo, led by President and CEO Dennis R. Cataldo, is the largest private EMS provider in Massachusetts. The company operates more than 200 vehicles from 25 base locations and employs over 1,200 staff. Under the agreement, Cataldo will also provide an additional paramedic service unit and handle intercampus patient transportation between Lawrence, Methuen, and Haverhill hospitals.

Lawrence Hospital's Central Medical Emergency Direction office, known as C-MED, serves dispatch needs for 49 cities and towns across northeastern Massachusetts. That regional dispatch role is unaffected.

Neither organization disclosed financial terms. The partnership is already in effect with no additional implementation milestones announced.