Missouri EMS Chopper Faces Competition

Jan. 5--In September, University Hospital unveiled a plan to add another helicopter to its fleet -- one based outside Sedalia in the town of LaMonte.

Proponents hailed the move as bringing expedient emergency care to an under-served rural pocket of the state.

A couple of months later, the Staff for Life helicopter has encountered some competition in the air.

Last weekend, West Plains-based Air Evac Lifeteam launched its own emergency helicopter service just north of Sedalia. The two landing pads are just eight miles from each other as the crow flies, said Tim Mosier, emergency management services director for Sedalia and Pettis County.

Though, on paper, having two air ambulances sounds better than having one, Mosier said the expanding market brings some headaches.

"It's created a small dilemma," he said. "We have to make sure we're very calculated in which air ambulance we send -- when and where."

Mosier said he is working with a committee to create protocols to determine which service would be called when. He wants to make sure it doesn't appear one service is favored over the other. University of Missouri Health Care spokeswoman Mary Jenkins, however, said the panel should consider some key differences.

The Staff for Life helicopters carry blood for transfusions, and the service is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Services.

"We're really providing a different type of service," Jenkins said. "We're offering much more advanced services, and we're the only accredited service in the Mid-Missouri area."

Steve Bassett, director of base operations for Air Evac, has a different perspective.

Bassett said that few air ambulances stock blood and that research does not indicate it's needed. He said his company has applied to receive the same accreditation MU's service has and expects to receive it this year.

Like MU, Air Evac also staffs its helicopter with trained nurses and emergency personnel.

It also offers a membership program that operates much like an automobile club. For an annual fee of $50 for an individual or $60 for a household, if you need emergency transport, you can ride the air ambulance at no additional cost.

Air Evac has been operating for more than 20 years and specializes in rural areas, with 60 bases in 11 states, including nine in Missouri.

Staff for Life's helicopters are owned and operated by Air Methods Corp., a Denver-based company. The hospital hires its own medics and nurses, who also staff the helicopter.

A ride for the uninsured or non-members on either chopper isn't cheap. Flights average about $9,000 on an MU helicopter, a spokesman with Air Methods said. And an Air Evac ride costs between $6,000 and $8,000, a company official said.

MU helicopters cost more to operate than the revenue they bring in. Each costs about $485,000 per year to run, and $465,000 of that amount is reimbursed by Air Methods.

Since MU's helicopter in Pettis County has been airborne, it has run 66 flights, Jenkins said.

Air Evac ran a couple over the weekend.

Bassett said he believes there's enough business to keep each service going.

"The bottom line is that we were aware that there was a need there greater than a year ago," he said. "We met with hospital and emergency officials and were invited there. I think we will stay there for the long term, and I also feel it's an asset for the community to have two helicopters there."

It might be an asset, but Mosier said it also presents a challenge.

Mosier said he expects to have protocols in the next two weeks. He said the committee is considering a rotating shift for the services, much the way wreckers are called to accident scenes.

The accounting is a little more complex, he said, because the services are slightly different.

"If one company had equipment or supplies that could save this person's life, we would use that service," Mosier said. "We're going to try to make a fair assessment and go from there."