Medevac choppers safer when publicly funded

Another example of how the profit motive can be dangerous for patients. The state of Maine's medevac program is publicly funded -- and has a far safer track record than for-profit medevac companies.

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LifeFlight doing it right in deadly skies of medevac


Maine's helicopter rescue program emerges as the gold standard in one of the nation's most dangerous industries.
By GILBERT M. GAUL and MARY PAT FLAHERTY, The Washington Post
August 23, 2009

LEWISTON — Nights don't come much darker than Maine's. From a speeding helicopter, the sky blends seamlessly into the ground even in clear weather.

With so much forest and so little light, the crews of LifeFlight of Maine would be picking their way through pitch-black if not for the $12,000 night-vision goggles each member wears.

The goggles are one element of an extensive safety regimen that sets LifeFlight apart from many medical helicopter programs in the country. And the donations and state money that paid for them and other upgrades speak to how Maine's sole helicopter medevac program has come to be viewed as a public utility among the for-profit companies that dominate the industry.



http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/story.php?id=278634&ac=PHnws