Download our newsletter containing
the latest news and events here.

By Chris Cobb
The Herald-Zeitung
Published September 25, 2009

Comal County residents now could save money on the high cost of being flown by helicopter for emergency medical care.

San Antonio AirLife is offering annual memberships that would cover all or part of the cost of transport to a hospital not paid for by insurance providers — an investment of less than $50 that could potentially save victims thousands.

“A lot of people don’t realize the cost of medical transport,” Stephen Soliz, a business development representative for AirLife told Comal County Commissioners Thursday. “We bill by the mile, so a trip from Comal County to San Antonio could cost around $14,000. Some insurance providers will cover it, but some pay for as little as 60 percent.”

The difference, Soliz said, can mean thousands of dollars that have to come out of the pockets of someone who needed an emergency medical flight.

And since Christus Santa Rosa Hospital — New Braunfels doesn’t offer some of the services emergency patients need, they’re often flown to University Hospital or another facility in San Antonio.

SAN ANTONIO -- Last year, 13 medical helicopter crashes resulted in 29 deaths, a number higher than any other year on record, according to the National Transportation Safety Board. As a result, the NTSB held public hearings that included the president of San Antonio's AirLife, whose company's perfect safety record stands tall among its counterparts.

Read more at: http://www.ksat.com/news/19510108/detail.html.

San Antonio AirLIFE honored as top EMS air medical program in Texas

(SAN ANTONIO – December 2, 2008) --San Antonio AirLIFE was named 2008 Texas’ EMS Air Medical Service of the year at the 23rd Annual Texas EMS Conference in Ft. Worth on November 24. The award, presented by the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) EMS division, honors the EMS air medical service that demonstrates the highest standards in providing patient care to the citizens of Texas.

I am extremely proud of the AirLIFE team for its commitment to safety, excellent patient care and community service,” said Robert W. Hilliard, President and CEO of AirLIFE. “We are so honored to bring this recognition back to San Antonio. The continued support of our community is vital to our ability to sustain such a high quality program.” This is the third time for AirLIFE to be named the top air medical service in the state. The first recognition came in 1998, the first year this award was given by DSHS.

AirLIFE was nominated by several EMS agencies, fire departments, and healthcare professionals at hospitals throughout Texas Trauma Service Area P. Trauma Area P includes Bexar, as well as 21 other South Texas counties. The region is home to some 2 million Texans, over 26,000 square miles in size and geographically larger than 17 U.S. states.

Serving the community since 1991, AirLIFE is the only nonprofit and CAMTS (Commission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Services) accredited air medical service in Southwest Texas and provides emergency air transport to more than 50 counties within a 150-mile radius of the San Antonio. AirLIFE is jointly owned by Baptist Health System and University Health System.

Click here to download complete PDF of this story.