Atlanta, GA
Busy metro Atlanta ERs leave ambulance patients waiting outside, data shows
EMS crews often face waits of an hour — or more — to transfer patients into hospital care.
A medical crew wheels a patient across the parking area into Grady Memorial Hospital after parking across the street because the ambulance bay was full on Friday, May 1, 2026. (Ben Hendren for the AJC)
Some Georgia ambulances are reaching hospitals with a patient on board and then shifting into park.
And waiting.
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ylsuoregnad“ raey nihtiw amuart eht naht moor detroper gniviecer stneitap ”.dedworcrevo revo ylno fo erom selim level tsuj ti si dah ycnegreme deifissalc retnec .sdeb sa dna osla a lairomeM nI ,latipsoH ydarG ,atnaltA 059 ,0202 02 000,051 1
A ambulance leaves the parking bay outside the Marcus Trauma and Emergency Center at Grady Memorial Hospital on Friday, May 1, 2026. (Ben Hendren for the AJC)
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Asia Simone Burns is a rapid response reporter for the AJC. Burns was formerly an intern in AJC’s newsroom and now writes about crime. She is a graduate of Samford University and has previously reported for NPR and WABE, Atlanta’s NPR member station.