Milwaukee County’s Prehospital Blood Program has been selected for recognition in the Wisconsin Policy Forum’s 2026 Salute to Local Government awards, honoring the program as a model of public-private partnership. The recognition is shared by the Milwaukee County EMS Division, the county’s fire departments, Versiti, and the Medical College of Wisconsin, the partners who have built and sustained the program together.

Milwaukee County EMS was the first in Wisconsin, and one of the first fire-based EMS systems in the nation, to carry whole blood in the field. When we covered the program’s first year, 38 patients had received prehospital transfusions. Today, more than 100 units have been administered in the field.

Dan Pojar, EMS Division Director for Milwaukee County, credited the significant behind-the-scenes effort that makes the program work, and said there is now clear evidence that lives have been saved in Milwaukee County because of it.

The program’s strength lies in how its partners divide the work. Versiti supplies the blood, the Medical College of Wisconsin provides medical direction, and the county’s Office of Emergency Management handles training, resources, and logistics for participating fire departments. Unused units are returned to the hospital blood bank before expiration, so no blood goes to waste. In the field, the Delta ICE 2L Smart Blood Cooler keeps whole blood within its required temperature range during transport and on scene.

The award winners will be celebrated at the 34th Annual Salute on November 18 at the Italian Community Center in Milwaukee. Congratulations to everyone in Milwaukee County who has made this program a success, and to every patient who has made it home because of it.