Air Ambulance Information
Understanding Air Ambulance Services:
Air Ambulance Cost
 The cost of an air ambulance can add up quite quickly, but in the case of
medical transportation one thing is certain: cheaper is not always better.
Two things most people always associate with high costs is aviation and
healthcare: and air ambulance combines the two. There are a lot of factor’s
that go into the final cost of an air ambulance service: the current cost of
fuel, travel distance, maintenance costs of the high tech medical equipment
on board, maintenance cost of the aircraft, training for medical and flight
crews, and insurance costs are all part of the expenses the air ambulance
companies incur.
A good air ambulance service will work with you to keep costs
down, but there are things you should know yourself to avoid as much cost
build-up as possible. If you are willing to be flexible, it could save you a
lot of money. All air ambulance service providers assign a flight
coordinator to each patient. These coordinator’s will work with you get the
best possible service for the best possible price.
Destination location. Flying to an institute in Boston?
If your willing to land in Providence instead, and use ground transportation
for the remaining distance, it may save you a couple thousand dollars. Check
around to see what other airports are in the area, you may find a much
cheaper flight if your willing to drive the last hour to your real
destination.
Date of departure. If you can move your departure date
by a day or two, it may save you a lot of money. When the air ambulance
takes you to your destination, it generally has to make what is called a
backhaul, or the flight back to where it came from. You are charged for
this. However, if there is a patient in your destination city who is leaving
by air ambulance after your arrival, you are only charged the one way fee
for transport. If you check around for departure dates you may find that by
waiting a day to land or leaving a day early you are eliminating the
‘backhaul’ fee if there is another patient waiting to fly.
Night travel and cash discounts. If you can avoid it,
don’t travel overnight. This incurs overnight fees for the flight crew and
additional airport fees. Most air ambulance services allow you to pay by
credit card. However, if you happen to be able to pay by cash or bank wire,
most companies are willing to cut you a break on overall fees.
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