The National Assembly yesterday gave a first reading to four bills that would set national standards for ambulance services, regulate telehealth, overhaul the protection of national heritage and give courts more alternatives to prison for people convicted of minor offences.
Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs Anil Nandlall SC presented the Emergency Medical Services Bill 2026, Bill No. 14 of 2026, on behalf of Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony. The bill would establish the Guyana Emergency Medical Services Authority to regulate ambulance operators and emergency medical personnel. It also provides for an integrated national emergency medical services system, clinical oversight and disaster preparedness.
According to the Department of Public Information (DPI) the proposed licensing and operating standards would apply to ambulance services run by public and private health facilities and the Guyana Fire Service. They would cover vehicle specifications, medical equipment and staff qualifications. The measure is intended to improve the care patients receive before reaching hospital, including treatment to stabilise those who are critically ill or injured.
The Telehealth and Digital Health Services Bill 2026, Bill No. 15 of 2026, seeks to regulate the delivery of remote consultations and other digital health services. Guyana’s public telemedicine programme began in 2022 in four Region Nine communities. In August, Anthony told DPI that telemedicine was available at 135 locations across the interior, allowing community health workers to consult doctors at hospitals and other facilities.
Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport Charles Ramson Jr. presented the National Heritage Preservation Bill 2026. It seeks to repeal the National Trust Act and establish a National Heritage Preservation Council. In outlining the measure ahead of the sitting, Nandlall on his Issues in News programme said that it would set out how heritage sites, districts and objects found on land or underwater are identified, recorded and protected. He said it would also provide for compensation where the State seeks to acquire privately owned heritage property.
Ramson also presented the Criminal Justice Alternative Sentencing Bill 2026, Bill No. 17 of 2026. It would allow courts to impose curfew and community service orders on people convicted of certain minor offences and would repeal the Extra-Mural Work Act. The existing Act, which dates to 1955, already allows courts to order public work in place of imprisonment for minor offences. Alternative sentencing was among the justice reforms the government announced earlier this year.
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