The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved a five-year air ambulance services contract with CALSTAR, the company that responds to major-injury incidents and transports patients to local hospitals by helicopter.
CALSTAR, also known as REACH Air Medical Services LLC, is a subsidiary of Global Medical Response, the same parent company as American Medical Response.
It has been providing air ambulance services in Santa Barbara County since 2006 and is based out of the Santa Maria Airport.
“Due to an administrative issue, the contract lapsed in July 2023,” County Executive Office spokeswoman Jackie Ruiz said.
Emergency Medical Services Agency staff and CALSTAR made minor amendments to the agreement, and those were finalized in November, she said.
The contract the supervisors approved Tuesday is retroactive to November.
“Despite the gap in the agreement, there was no lapse in service from CALSTAR,” Ruiz said.
When asked about the contract gap, a company spokesperson told Noozhawk, “CALSTAR/REACH is currently operating under a temporary EMS permit extension until further negotiations can be completed.”
CALSTAR agrees in the contract to pay the county about $157,000 over the five-year term for monitoring and oversight of the services agreement.
The helicopter’s flight crew includes a pilot and two critical care flight nurses or a nurse and a paramedic. They often respond to vehicle collisions and other incidents, at the request of the county dispatch center, and airlift patients to local hospitals.
Just last week, a driver injured in a crash on Highway 246 was airlifted to Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital. The crew can also transport patients from one hospital to the other, depending on the type of care they need.
The county also has a rescue helicopter, operated by the sheriff’s and fire departments’ joint air support program. It has a hoist and is often used for search and rescue missions on hiking trails and other hard-to-reach terrain.
Santa Barbara County’s contract for ground ambulance services with AMR expires at the end of February. However, the company filed a lawsuit challenging the new permit system, and a judge ordered both parties to extend the contract until the case gets resolved.
Judge Donna Geck scheduled the trial for July, and AMR will continue providing ambulance services in the meantime. The County Fire Department is continuing its transition plan to become a provider by hiring staff and equipping its fleet of ambulances.