HALO Air Ambulance. (Supplied by HALO Rescue)

By David Opinko

Future of HALO Air Ambulance Program “bleak”, officials call for funding

Sep 5, 2019 | 1:44 PM

LETHBRIDGE COUNTY, AB – A group of mayors and reeves from Southern Alberta will be asking the provincial government to fund the HALO Air Ambulance program.

A helicopter based out of Medicine Hat is used to take patients, particularly from more rural and remote communities, to medical facilities in a “life saving, cost-effective program”.

“Being based in the south, HALO is often close to the site of incidents in the region and can reach the scene with Advance Life Support Paramedics very quickly,” reads a press release from Lethbridge County. “From there they have quick access to the heliports at all the hospitals in southern Alberta.”

The current one-year funding agreement between HALO and Alberta Health Services is set to expire on October 1st, 2019, and included a one-time grant of $1,000,000 but gave no ongoing commitments.

“The operating costs of this helicopter, including the extended daylight hours it is allowed to fly, are certainly higher than the original machine but it is more effective, and HALO’s budget is still considerably lower than anyone else.”

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The organization has a funding shortfall of $750,000, and while they have received donations from private individuals, businesses, municipalities, and service clubs, the County believes it needs consistent and reliable long-term funding.

Elected officials from the region are asking for a one-time grant of $750,000 to close the current gap and for the Premier and the Ministry of Health to provide adequate ongoing funding.

They also passed a second motion, which calls on the province to conduct an independent review of the Helicopter EMS system in Alberta that would include consultations with the public and various stakeholders.