Intermountain Health expands emergency services in rural Montana

New agreement stations paramedics closer to Worden community to improve emergency response times.

Published on Feb. 23, 2026

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Intermountain Health has made an agreement with Yellowstone County and the Worden Fire Department to station two paramedics at the Worden Fire station in Huntley, Montana. This will help provide faster emergency medical response to the rural Worden community, where volunteer EMT teams have struggled with staffing and long response times in the past.

Why it matters

The new arrangement aims to improve public safety and emergency medical care for underserved rural areas of Yellowstone County, where residents have faced long waits for ambulance services. It highlights the challenges rural communities face in maintaining adequate emergency response capabilities.

The details

Under the agreement, Intermountain Health will station two paramedics at the Worden Fire station, where they will work alongside the four-person team of volunteer EMTs. This will allow emergency services to reach most of rural Yellowstone County within 15 minutes, a significant improvement over the previous 45-minute to hour-long response times. Intermountain Health will also pay for remodeling the Worden Fire Department ambulances and the paramedic sleeping quarters.

  • Worden Fire Chief Lance Taylor signed the agreement on Friday morning.
  • The new arrangement will go into effect immediately.

The players

Intermountain Health

A regional non-profit health system that is expanding emergency services in rural Montana.

Worden Fire Department

A volunteer fire department in the rural community of Worden, Montana that will host the new Intermountain Health paramedics.

Yellowstone County

The county in Montana that has partnered with Intermountain Health and the Worden Fire Department on this emergency services expansion.

Lance Taylor

The Worden Fire Chief who signed the agreement with Intermountain Health.

Sharon Van Dyke

A volunteer EMT with the Worden Fire Department who welcomes the additional emergency support.

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What they’re saying

“It's the answer basically to our prayers and what we need in Worden.”

— Lance Taylor, Worden Fire Chief (kxlf.com)

“The more people we can bring into the community, I think it's going to be better. Safer, much safer.”

— Sharon Van Dyke, Volunteer EMT (kxlf.com)

“Every second counts, every minute counts. So, to be out there and have a quick response is very important.”

— James Waller, Intermountain Health Paramedic (kxlf.com)

What’s next

Intermountain Health plans to begin stationing the two paramedics at the Worden Fire station immediately to start providing faster emergency response times for the rural community.

The takeaway

This partnership between Intermountain Health, Yellowstone County, and the Worden Fire Department highlights the critical need to improve emergency medical services in underserved rural areas, where volunteer first responders often struggle with staffing and long response times. The new arrangement aims to save lives by getting paramedics to emergencies faster.