United Hatzalah is a volunteer-based organization which provide emergency medical response within minutes of any medical emergency for free. United Hatzalah volunteers responded to more than 750,000 calls last year throughout Israel, saving lives every day.

United Hatzalah volunteers provide lifesaving medical care on the scene, prior to the arrival of an ambulance. They arrive on average in 3 minutes from the time of the call. In metropolitan areas, the average response time is 90 seconds.

United Hatzalah volunteers treat and stabilize the patient and then work with the arriving ambulance crew, which typically arrives 8 – 15 minutes after the initial call for help. In outlying areas, the wait for an ambulance can be significantly longer.

Volunteer first responders begin treatment in order to stabilize a patient’s condition. Receiving initial treatment within 3 minutes of the incident assures a higher chance of survival in critical situations, and speedier recovery for many other injuries and illnesses. Brain damage and death transpires 4 – 6 minutes after someone experiences cardiac arrest. A victim’s chances of survival are reduced by 7 – 10% with every minute that passes without defibrillation and advanced life support intervention.

In many places, Hatzalah, or ‘Hatzolah’ is used by the local Jewish community as an alternative EMS service for the Jewish community. There is an informal brotherhood of independent Hatzalah organizations throughout the world, but from an operational and organizational stand point, most of them operate independently of one another, with each one operating according to the protocols of their own respective medical and executive boards. In Israel, United Hatzalah brought together dozens of separate Hatzalah groups and unified them into one national organization able to respond to any emergency anywhere in the country and beyond. United Hatzalah is the only Hatzalah in the world to include non-religious, non-Jewish, and female responders, and is the Hatzalah organization with the fastest response times thanks to its diverse and comprehensive network of volunteers. 

United Hatzalah’s volunteers are EMTs, paramedics, or doctors – secular and religious, male and female, Jewish and non-Jewish. All calls are responded to and treated regardless of religion, ethnicity, and gender. Our volunteers come from all backgrounds, and all different segments of society, from truck drivers to sanitation workers, taxi drivers, bankers, lawyers, police officers, firefighters, felafel shop owners and even members of the Israeli Knesset. They are teachers, students, parents, children, siblings, neighbours, and members of almost every community across our great country. 

United Hatzalah volunteers are dispersed throughout Israel and serve in the areas where they work, study and live. As soon as United Hatzalah’s dispatch receives a call, the Logis System immediately identifies the volunteers closest to the incident and dispatches them to respond. A volunteer could be working in an office building downtown and might receive a call to help a heart attack victim from the very same building. Similarly a volunteer at home could be dispatched to respond to an emergency own the street, next door, or even in the very same apartment complex to where they live. The key is in the network, the more volunteers, the faster the response. 

All United Hatzalah first responders are trained and certified as EMTs, paramedics or MD’s by the existing medical training authorities under the supervision of the Israeli Ministry of Health.

Organize group fundraisers (e.g, raise money to collectively purchase urgently needed equipment and vehicles). Hold a parlor meeting in your home/community. Sign up for our bi-weekly email updates. Contact your local UH representative and learn how to you can represent us in your own community. Take first aid courses and become a first responder yourself, or, for those in Israel, you can sign up and become a United Hatzalah volunteer yourself. Of course you can always follow us on social media and share our posts on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Telegram, and other social media channels! Spread our name!

Contact us at [email protected] for additional opportunities!

In general, the government does not provide funding to the organization. There does exist very limited support for site specific projects based on regional support or support from local municipalities for project-related initiatives. Pretty much all of United Hatzalah’s support comes from donations from individuals and foundations in Israel and internationally.

Unlike other emergency medical services and ambulance companies, both in Israel and abroad, United Hatzalah never charges for its services and does not pay its volunteers. We work out of passion and dedication – all our equipment is provided by donations and even our ambulance services are completely free of charge!

Yes! There are many opportunities. Any of our products can be donated in honor or in memory of others, just click “Make a dedication with my donation.” Visit our website or reach out to us at [email protected]. 

Visit our donation page and select from the wide range of donation options available.

United Hatzalah relies on the generosity of individuals, federations, foundations and other charitable organizations around the world. Anyone can make a donation, and every donation is important, no matter how big, or how small. 

United Hatzalah’s 2021 budget was $33.5 million. Of this amount, approximately 92.4% was applied directly to the organization’s services (training, vehicles, equipment, volunteer activities) and approximately 7.6% was applied to organizational management. Click here to review our 990 for 2021 (PDF) and click here to review our Audited Financials.

Yes. Friends of United Hatzalah of Israel is committed to respecting the privacy of our donors. No donor information will be shared with, sold to, rented to or exchanged with any third party. We collect and maintain the following types of donor information: name, address, phone number, email address. We will use your information to complete transactions and to communicate with you regarding appeals, to update you about how your donations are being used, and to share with you special events that may be of interest to you. We do not retain any credit card numbers, and those given to us can only be used for donation purposes. We assure you that the identity of all our donors will be kept confidential and use of donor information will be limited to the internal purposes of Friends of United Hatzalah of Israel.

All funds go directly towards our lifesaving mission, including lifesaving activities and disaster preparedness in Israel.

2020 990 Friends of United Hatzalah (US)

2021 990 Friends of United Hatzalah (US)

2022 990 Friends of United Hatzalah (US)

2023 990 Friends of United Hatzalah (US)