County Wants To Buy New Stretchers For Obese Patients

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MIAMI (CBSMiami) - In another sign of the times, health officials in Alachua County are looking to buy new stretchers with hydraulic lifts to assist emergency rescue personnel with obese individuals.

County emergency officials want an $11,500 grant to help buy two new stretchers that can move patients who are too big to be safely transported on current equipment.

County rescuers say they get more than 75 patients a year who weigh more than 400 pounds. The problem has increased as the state's obesity rate ballooned from 11 percent in 1990 to 26 percent in 2013.