MIDDLETOWN, Ohio — CareFlight is replacing one of its medical assistance helicopters and the charity foundation for Atrium Medical Center is asking the city of Middletown to assist in funding.
The city was asked for $50,000 this year and then $100,000 a year for the next four years — totaling $450,000. Funds would come from the city’s Civic Development Fund, which is designated for charitable contributions, according to City Manager Ashley Combs.
This is a drop in the bucket for the $13.5 million price tag, city leaders said.
Mike Stautberg, president of the Atrium Medical Center Foundation, said the new medical aircraft would be an “extension of first responders” in Middletown, one of the primary reasons the foundation decided to approach the city with the ask.
“The busiest of all the CareFlight hubs is actually at Atrium,” Stautberg said.
Atrium Medical Center Foundation — along with Good Samaritan Foundation-Dayton, Miami Valley Hospital Foundation and Upper Valley Medical Center Foundation — are working in tandem to raise funds to purchase the aircraft, which will replace a 34-year-old unit.
“We do believe that with your support, we will find other support, not just throughout the community, but also with some of the other surrounding municipalities,” Stautberg said in Tuesday’s council meeting.
CareFlight is a separate company and is not owned by Premier Health.
Middletown was the first municipality the foundation approached to ask for funds, and additional communities have not yet been identified, according to Stautberg.
“You may look at this and think that this is an expensive proposition, but I’m going to tell you that...some things we do for the city of Middletown, we do for public good,” Councilman Paul Lolli said. “This is one of them.”
“No amount of money is too expensive to save citizens of Middletown,” he said.
While a decision was not made during the July 1 council meeting on whether to provide funds, Vice Mayor Steve West and Councilwoman Jennifer Carter voiced support for the project in addition to Lolli.
The new aircraft can move up to 200 miles per hour and will have more space than the older aircraft, allowing crews to transport two patients at one time.
Enhanced safety features include “APU mode,” where crews can stop rotor blades from moving when on the ground, allowing CareFlight to load and unload patients without needing to shutdown and startup rotors, according to Atrium’s website.
Latest technology in the aircraft includes four-axis autopilot and 10,000-foot altitude capabilities; a fully integrated digital cockpit; airborne collision and avoidance system; and more.
The aircraft will also extend CareFlight’s range, allowing for transport of patients to medical facilities and specialized care farther away.
CareFlight serves more than 450 agencies in 17 counties and includes three helicopters at three locations across the region.
More than 100 people work for CareFlight, offering rapid care response for those with serious, life-threatening conditions.
