GLENVIEW, ILLINOIS – February 2, 2023 – The Commission on Accreditation of Ambulance Services (CAAS) is pleased to announce that Mark Postma has accepted the position of Interim Administrator for CAAS’s Ground Vehicle Standard.  Mark Postma succeeds Mark Van Arnam, who held the Administrator position from the inception of the Ground Vehicle Standard in 2014.  Van Arnam leaves CAAS to take on the role of President of the REV Ambulance Group.

CAAS Chair Dale Berry said “CAAS wishes to extend its deep-felt appreciation for the tremendous contributions that Mark Van Arnam has provided over the last 7 years.  Tapping into his significant industry expertise and passion for creating standards that improve ground vehicle safety, Mark Van Arnam was instrumental in establishing the CAAS Ground Vehicle Standard as the emergency transportation’s preferred standard. Our industry is safer because of Mark Van Arnam’s commitment and passion.”

In announcing Postma’s new interim role within CAAS, Dale Berry, said; “CAAS is extremely fortunate to have someone with Mark Postma’s experience and leadership abilities to continue the very successful launch and ongoing development of the Ground Vehicle Standard.  Mark Postma has been the CAAS GVS Committee Co-Chair since 2016 and has a depth of knowledge that ensures a seamless transition.  Mark Postma started as a paramedic over 40 years ago and continues as an esteemed leader in the EMS field.”

About the CAAS Ground Vehicle Standard (GVS)

Starting in 2014, CAAS established a Vehicle Standard Committee to develop consensus-based ground ambulance vehicle standards called GVS. Thanks to the hard work of this broad-based committee, the third significant update to the standard, GVS 3.0, was released in July 2022.
With the release of GVS 3.0, CAAS has strengthened its position as the leader in emergency vehicle standards. The CAAS GVS Standard is designed for use by EMS regulators and providers for use in their vehicle requirement processes.

The new ambulance vehicle section of GVS V3.0 contains updates and edits from the prior version, and includes the latest safety, quality, and compliance requirements for new production ambulances. In addition, GVS V3.0 contains a comprehensive Remount Standard. The GVS Remount Standard provides minimum requirements for both Remounters and Remounted Ambulances, including specific requirements for vehicle production processes and quality control.

About the Commission on Accreditation of Ambulance Services (CAAS)

The Commission on Accreditation of Ambulance Services (CAAS) was established in 1993 to encourage and promote quality patient care in America’s medical transportation system.  CAAS is an independent Commission that established a comprehensive series of standards for the ambulance service industry.

CAAS accreditation signifies that an ambulance service has met the “gold standard” determined by the ambulance industry to be essential in a modern emergency medical services provider. These standards often exceed those established by state or local regulation.  The CAAS standards are designed to increase operational efficiency and clinical quality, while decreasing risk and liability to the organization.
CAAS is an American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Accredited Standards Developer (ASD).