Dec 3, 2008 10:42 am US/Eastern
Maryland Medevac Transports Drop Since Fatal Crash
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) ―
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The number of Maryland Medevac transports has dropped significantly since a fatal crash in September, and lawmakers are now wondering if they should proceed with plans to replace the entire aging helicopter fleet.
The number of Maryland Medevac transports have dropped significantly since new protocols were put in place after a fatal crash, causing lawmakers on Tuesday to question how many helicopters are needed to replace the state's aging fleet.
Donald DeVries, chairman of the State Emergency Medical Services Board, and Dr. Robert Bass, who is the director of the Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical Services Systems, briefed lawmakers on the Joint Committee on Health Care Delivery and Financing about an expert panel's findings.
There were only 396 requests for Medevac flights in the seven weeks after the fatal crash that killed four of the five people aboard. Of those requests, roughly 57 percent resulted in helicopter flights, Bass said.
That projects to about 1,679 transports a year, "significantly down from what our historical numbers are," he said. There were about 4,100 flights last year.
Several lawmakers asked whether the downward trend would continue and how it would affect the state's need for new helicopters, at a time when Maryland is facing a serious budget crunch.
DeVries said the board that oversees Maryland's emergency transport program still believes new helicopters are needed and will review how large the fleet should be.
It could take about six months to get the proper data to understand if the downward trend will continue, he said.
After the September crash, state officials issued new protocols requiring consultations between first responders and a physician in all Medevac requests for trauma patients who don't have obviously serious injuries.
That's part of the reason for the decline in helicopter flights, Bass said. Field response officials are thinking more carefully about the need to fly patients, he added.
A panel of national experts who examined Maryland's emergency helicopter system concluded that more patients are flown in helicopters to trauma centers in the state than in comparable states or regions with Medevac programs.
The panel found that Maryland probably has too many helicopters in its fleet, but stopped short of saying the state should cut the fleet's size.
Delegate Dan Morhaim, an emergency room doctor who co-chairs the joint committee, said he spoke with three panel members who said Maryland can have just as good of a Medevac system with fewer helicopters.
Morhaim said one member told him six helicopters would be sufficient, or nearly half the size of the current 11-helicopter fleet. Another member said eight would be enough.
"I think we'll need some specifics from you on that at some point soon," Morhaim, D-Baltimore County, told Bass and DeVries.
The board that oversees the emergency transport process is scheduled to receive a written report by the panel in early January.
Morhaim also asked how much a new helicopter is expected to cost. Bass said high demand pushed costs up in the last 10 years, but the downturn in the economy is helping lower the price. Bass estimated the cost would be between $10 million and $20 million a helicopter.
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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