Air ambulances in the United States

Air ambulances in the United States are operated by a variety of hospitals, local government agencies, and for-profit companies. Medical evacuations by air are also performed by the United States Armed Forces (for example in combat areas, training accidents, and United States Coast Guard rescues) and United States National Guard (typically while responding to natural disasters).

Cost

In 2002, the federal government increased the reimbursement for medical flights for Medicare and Medicaid patients. This caused an increase in the number of for-profit ambulance services, which charge much higher rates than non-profit hospitals and expanded services available to people with private health insurance. With lower reimbursements, hospitals could still operate the service as a loss leader because severely injured patients would be incurring significant charges for medical treatment. NPR cited one 2008 case where two patients were transported from the same accident scene to the same hospital, where the hospital charged $1,700 and the private service charged $13,000.[1]

List of air ambulances
This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by expanding it with reliably sourced entries.
An Airlift Northwest Crew receives a patient transfer from the United States Coast Guard
A Mercy Jets crew loading a patient for transport in a Gulfstream Aerospace GIV air ambulance
  • AC Global Medical Transports
  • Acadian Ambulance & Air Med Services – Headquartered in Lafayette, Louisiana, covers most of the state of Louisiana and parts of western Mississippi.
  • Advanced Air Ambulance – a fixed-wing air ambulance company, headquartered in Miami, Florida. Advanced Air Ambulance provides both domestic and international services.
  • Air Care – University of Cincinnati Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH; covers parts of Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky; every flight is staffed by UCMC Flight Physician or Midlevel Provider
  • AirCare – University of Mississippi Medical Center, Mississippi. CAMTS certified with bases in Jackson, Meridian, Columbus, and Greenwood. Covers the entire state and transports all age groups. AirCare flight teams consist of a MS-CCP and a Flight Nurse.
  • AirCare – CHI Health Good Samaritan in Kearney Nebraska, serves central Nebraska. CAMTS certified, flying a Bell 429[2]
  • AirCARE1 – An Air Ambulance company providing domestic and international air medical transportation with bases in Arizona and New Mexico. AirCARE1 owns and operates a fleet of fixed wing Learjet aircraft, and has dual accreditation from CAMTS & EURAMI.
  • Air Evac – Operating out of Phoenix, Arizona Air Evac services areas across Arizona, United States, Canada, and Mexico.
  • Air Evac Lifeteam – the largest medical transport program under one name, covers Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas and West Virginia. Also operates Texas LifeStar in Central Texas.
  • AirLife Denver – Denver, Colorado and surrounding areas, providing superior critical care transport to a 10 state and mountain region. CAMTS accredited for ground, rotor, and fixed wing transports.
  • AirLife Georgia (Air Methods Corporation) – Serving the state of Georgia and surrounding states with 12 strategically located bases. AirLife Georgia operates 12 rotor wing and 1 fixed wing aircraft. Each aircraft carries 4 units of blood ready for transfusion to patients meeting criteria.[3] AirLife Georgia is accredited by CAMTS.[4][5]
  • AirLink Critical Care Transport – A CAMTS Certified program transporting patients in Central Oregon
  • AirMed International – Based in Birmingham, Alabama
  • Air Methods – Largest US air ambulance operator under a single FAA part 135 certificate.
  • Alia MedFlight – Air ambulance medical flight transportation using fixed wing aircraft for medevac, organ transport, international/domestic medical flight, and medical repatriation services. Aircraft operated in cooperation with FAR Part 135 certificate holder Swift Aircraft Management.
  • AMR Air Ambulance – Provides domestic and international air medical transportation using specially equipped fixed wing aircraft.
  • Angel MedFlight – Provides safe, seamless, air ambulance transfers for patients across the country and around the world, expanding patient care options by increasing accessibility to distant facilities. Simplifying the process and expediting medical flights, Flight Coordinators arrange all air and ground logistics 24 hours/day, 365 days/year; Critical Care Clinicians provide Bedside-to-Bedside transfers; and Claims Specialists manage the entire insurance authorization process.
  • ARCH Air Medical Service – Missouri, Illinois, and the surrounding regions.
  • Boston MedFlight – Headquartered in Bedford, Massachusetts Boston MedFlight transports emergency patients
  • Calstar (California Shock Trauma Air Rescue) is a nonprofit regional air ambulance company serving California and northern Nevada.
  • CareFlite – a 501c not-for-profit that is based in Dallas Texas area and sponsored by Baylor Scott & White Hospitals, Parkland Hospital, THR hospitals, JPS Hospital, and Methodist Hospitals.
  • CareFlight – serves the Dayton, Ohio region and a 150-mile (240 km) radius to serve much of Southwest Ohio. Based at Miami Valley Hospital[6]
  • Critical Air Medicine – Doing business as Critical Air, is based in San Diego, California
  • Critical Care Medflight – A CAMTS certified fixed-wing transport with bases in Georgia and Florida.
  • DHART – Dartmouth-Hitchcock Advanced Response Team[7]
  • EagleMed – Based out of Wichita, Kansas
  • EastCare – University Health Systems of Eastern Carolina owned, and operates in Eastern North Carolina[8]
  • Enloe FlightCare – hospital based, nonprofit. Owned and operated by Enloe Medical Center, Chico, California.
  • Flight for Life – many bases of operation across the United States
  • Guardian Flight – Alaska, Utah and Wyoming
  • HALO-Flight – 501C3 air ambulance for South Texas with bases in Corpus Christi, Alice and Beeville, Texas
  • Hospital Wing-Memphis Medical Center Air Ambulance Service – 501C3 not for profit with bases in Tennessee, Missouri, and Arkansas
  • Life Flight – Air ambulance based out of the Memorial Hermann Hospital- Texas Medical Center in Houston, Texas.
  • LifeFlight – Air ambulance based out of the University of Massachusetts University Hospital in Worcester, Massachusetts.
  • LifeFlight Eagle – Based out of Kansas City, Missouri, and has 5 units within its organization. 4 Bell 407's located in Chillicothe, Harrisonville, Odessa, and in Clinton. A dedicated EC145 is located at Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, for their critical care transport team.
  • Life Flight Network – Largest non-profit air ambulance in the US, serving Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and Montana.
  • LifeFlight of Maine - a not-for-profit critical care transport organization whose primary mission is the people of the state of Maine. Lifeflight operates out of three bases: one in Bangor (Northern Light Hospital), Lewiston (at Central Maine Medical Center) and Sanford (Sanford Airport) with primary operations out of three rotor and one fixed wing asset.[9]
  • LifeForce – Owned by Erlanger Health System in Chattanooga Tennessee. Operated from 6 bases, 3 in Tennessee, 2 in Georgia, and 1 in North Carolina.[10]
  • Lifeguard Aeromed – Fixed-wing air ambulance based out of Fort Worth, Texas serving the United States, Mexico, and Canada.
  • LifeLine – Critical Care air and ground transport based out of Indiana affiliated with Indiana University Health.
  • Life Link III – Life Link III helicopter bases are located in Minnesota and Wisconsin.
  • LifeLion Critical Care – Air ambulance based at Penn State Hershey Medical Center, serving the Central Pennsylvania area.[11]
  • LifeNet, Inc. – Based in Texarkana, Texas with operations also out of Hot Springs, Arkansas.
  • LifeNet – LifeNet operates five aircraft that serve Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and Nebraska, with services extending into portions of South Dakota and Minnesota. LifeNet Air Medical Services is owned and operated by Air Methods.[12]
  • Life Star – Based out of Hartford (CT.) Hospital.[13]
  • Life Star of Kansas – Based out of Topeka, Kansas and has two bases in Lawrence and Junction City, Kansas.
  • LifeSave Transport – Company originally based in Newton Kansas, recently moved to Wichita Kansas, operations in Kansas, Nebraska, Texas, and Hawaii. Operates rotor, fixed wing, and ground bases. Flies Bell 206, Bell 407, and King Air aircraft.[14]
Mercy Air 2
  • Maryland State Police Aviation Command – division focusing on medical evacuation operations. Aviation also supports ground units of the state and local police. Funding comes from vehicle registration fees.[15]
  • MedAir – Owned and operated by Midwest Medical Transport company. Based out of 3 bases, 2 in Nebraska and one in Iowa. Operates EC135 helicopters.[16]
  • Medflight – Based out of Columbus, Ohio.
  • Medway Air Ambulance – Based out of KLZU, Gwinnett County Airport, Lawrenceville, GA. Operates a fleet of 7 Learjet 35A and one Lear 45 aircraft covering the Western Hemisphere excluding Hawaii.

Mercy Air Med - Joint venture between MercyOne hospitals throughout Iowa. Consists of bases in Des Moines, Mason City, Carroll and Sioux City. Helicopters, pilots and Mechanics are provided by AirMethods while the medical staff is provided by MercyOne.

  • Mercy Flight Central – Non-profit critical care air medical service located in the central New York region offering rotor wing transport service of critical patients.
  • Mercy Flight – Western – Non-profit air medical service located in Western New York offering rotor wing and fixed wing services.
  • Mercy Flights – Medford, Oregon. Was the first successful air ambulance in the country, is non-profit. Serves mainly Southern Oregon and Northern California; 150-mile (240 km) radius for helicopter, and almost anywhere West of the Rocky Mountains for the fixed wing airplane, within 1,000 miles (1,600 km) of Medford.
  • Metro Life Flight – Cleveland, Ohio, run by MetroHealth, serves the Northeast Ohio area. Operates both air and ground services.
  • North Flight Aero Med – Traverse City, Michigan, a joint venture between Spectrum Health and Munson Healthcare with both Fixed and Rotor Wing services.
  • Omniflight Charleston – Air ambulance service in South Carolinaand part of Georgia.
  • PennSTAR Flight – Air ambulance service with six medical helicopters serving Eastern Pennsylvania and parts of New Jersey.[17]
  • REVA, Inc. – Fixed wing air ambulance provider created as a result of the 2012 merger between Aero Jet International, Inc. and Air Ambulance Professionals.[18] Aircraft are fully FAA certified, accredited by EURAMI and NAAMTA.[19] REVA's headquarters are located in Florida, and outlying bases in Arizona,[20] New York, and San Juan.[21]
  • ShandsCair Critical Care Transport Program – Gainesville, Florida – Aeromedical transport system of UF Health Shands Hospital and affiliated with the University of Florida, the program serves counties in Central and North Florida and includes five medical helicopters and a chartered fixed wing.[22]
  • SkyHealth – Air ambulance service of Yale New Haven Health in Connecticut.[23]
  • STAT Medevac – based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
  • Survival Flight – Ann Arbor, Michigan – CAMTS certified critical care transport program of Michigan Medicine, provides rapid and safe transport of critically ill and injured patients of any age group.
  • Trauma Hawk Aero-Medical Program – Palm Beach County, Florida taxpayer funded – trauma transport only
  • Trauma Star Air Ambulance (H.A.A.) – Monroe County, Florida taxpayer funded, operated by Monroe County Sheriff's Office and Monroe County Fire Rescue. Located at Marathon Airport.
  • TraumaOne Flight Services – Jacksonville, Florida – Founded in 1983 as the first aeromedical trauma program in Florida. A division of the UF Health Jacksonville Trauma Center and affiliated with the University of Florida, the program serves Northeast Florida and Southeast Georgia with helicopters stationed in St. Augustine, Yulee and Lake City, Florida.[24]
  • Travis County STAR Flight – Austin, Texas – Public emergency helicopter service for Travis County and surrounding areas.
  • Trinity Air Ambulance International, LLC – Fort Lauderdale, Florida – Founded in 1999 by medical professionals, operating fixed wing and medical escort services around the world.
  • UCAN, University of Chicago Aeromedical Network – Chicago, Illinois, Illinois
  • Global Air Ambulance – An air ambulance provider offering worldwide medical flight transports.
  • US Air Ambulance – Transports internationally

Incidents

Air Methods had, after the 2006 Mercy Air helicopter accident, a total of 19 accidents leading to the deaths of 21 people nationwide according to the National Transportation Safety Board's records.[25] Air Methods companies had three other fatal accidents, in a 10-year period. On September 7, 2002, three crew members died when a Mercy Air helicopter based in Nevada crashed in Nipton, California after the main rotor blades separated while maneuvering in flight after dark.[25] In January 2005, an Air Methods helicopter crashed in Washington, D.C. with two dead and one injured, and another crashed in Mississippi killing one.[26]

Craig Yale, the vice president of corporate development for Air Methods, stated in a news conference shortly after the accident that, "We fly over 100,000 hours a year, 85,000 missions a year, and in doing so have had very few fatal accidents over a 10-year period."[25]

On June 29, 2008, a Bell 407 medical helicopter operated by Air Methods collided with another medical helicopter in Arizona, killing six of the seven aboard both aircraft. Another Air Methods helicopter crashed in May in Wisconsin soon after taking off; three people were killed in that accident: the pilot, flight doctor and flight nurse.[27]

On September 28, 2008, Maryland State Police Trooper 2 (Eurocopter AS 365N1 Dauphin, N92MD) disappeared from radar and crashed with five people aboard in Walker Mill Regional Park in Prince George's County.[28] There were four confirmed fatalities, which included Pilot Stephen Bunker, TFC Mickey Lippy, EMT Tonya Mallard (Waldorf Volunteer Fire Department), and one of the two patients on board. This resulted in the grounding of all aircraft, until the cause is determined, with allied agencies covering the state.[29] This is the fourth fatal crash in the history of the MSP Aviation Division. The most recent crash prior to this occurred on January 19, 1986.

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See also

References
  1. Why The Cost Of Air Ambulances Is Rising
  2. "AirCare - Nebraska".
  3. "Air Methods Now Carrying Blood In Flight". www.airmethods.com. Retrieved 2017-08-09.
  4. "CAMTS Awards Accreditation to 16 Medical Transport Services | EMS World". www.emsworld.com. Retrieved 2017-08-09.
  5. "All-Programs". www.camts.org. Archived from the original on 2017-08-10. Retrieved 2017-08-09.
  6. "About CareFlight Air and Mobile Services". Archived from the original on 2011-07-26. Retrieved 2010-04-25.
  7. "Dartmouth-Hitchcock Advanced Response Team (DHART) | Dartmouth-Hitchcock". www.dartmouth-hitchcock.org. Retrieved 2017-11-11.
  8. "Medical Services | Emergency Trauma | Vidant Health". www.vidanthealth.com. Retrieved 2017-11-11.
  9. http://www.lifeflightmaine.org
  10. "LIFE FORCE". www.erlanger.org. Retrieved 2017-05-11.
  11. "Life Lion Critical Care Transport".
  12. "LifeNet".
  13. "LIFE STAR | Hartford Hospital". hartfordhospital.org. Retrieved 2017-11-11.
  14. http://www.lifesave.com. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  15. Maryland State Police Aviation Command Archived 2008-10-20 at the Wayback Machine
  16. "Midwest Medical Transport Company - MedAir".
  17. "PennStar Flight".
  18. "Aero Jet International: Fort Lauderdale-based air ambulance provider merges with competitor for cost savings and to better serve its customers". tribunedigital-sunsentinel. Retrieved 2017-03-25.
  19. "REVA Achieves NAAMTA Medical Transport Accreditation – NAAMTA". NAAMTA. 2016-10-22. Retrieved 2017-03-25.
  20. "Air Ambulance Demand Prompts REVA, Inc., Expansion in Western Region Operations - REVA Air Ambulance, Medical Flight Transport Service". REVA Air Ambulance, Medical Flight Transport Service. 2015-08-05. Retrieved 2017-03-25.
  21. "REVA Named Air Ambulance Company Of The Year At 2015 ITIJ Industry Awards". REVA Air Ambulance, Medical Flight Transport Service. 2015-11-09. Retrieved 2017-03-25.
  22. "ShandsCair Critical Care Transport Program".
  23. "SkyHealth - Yale New Haven Hospital". www.ynhh.org. Retrieved 2017-11-11.
  24. "TraumaOne".
  25. Garcia, Ana (2006-12-21). "Fatal Crash Raises Air Ambulance Safety Concerns". KNBC-TV News (Los Angeles). The Air Methods companies have had 19 crashes leading to the deaths of 21 people nationwide according to the National Transportation Safety Board.
  26. Gang, Duane W.; Lisa O'Neill-Hill; Paul LaRocco (2006-12-12). "Helicopters grounded : The number of crashes has increased in recent years, a federal study finds". Press-Enterprise. The pilot, nurse and paramedic of an air ambulance that crashed Sunday night in a foggy, hilly area near the summit of the Cajon Pass were an experienced crew, company officials and colleagues said Monday.
  27. "Air Methods stock down after crash". Denver Business Journal. 2008-06-30. Retrieved 2008-10-04.
  28. Four Fatalities in State Police Medevac crash in Prince George's County Archived 2010-06-13 at the Wayback Machine
  29. Helicopter accident kills 4. Archived 2008-09-29 at the Wayback Machine The Daily Times Retrieved September 28, 2008.
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