HALO Air Ambulance and Cypress County partner up

(HALO Air Ambulance/Supplied)

HALO Air Ambulance presented its business case for its funding model to Cypress County Council recently, and the result is partnership and a major investment through a shared funding model into the air ambulance program.

“Our goal has always been securing ongoing operational funding in partnership with local municipalities and the government of Alberta,” says Paul Carolan, HALO CEO.

The shared funding model proposes a partnership between the government of Alberta, regional municipalities within the HALO response area, and the HALO air ambulance program, with each partner providing approximately one third of the current $3 million dollar annual budget.

“With this investment, Cypress County has been a perennial partner since our inception, their vision and foresight are a major reason we have services like HALO in rural Alberta,” says Carolan.

Due to the decrease in traditional fundraising due to the pandemic, Cypress County Council approved a one-time investment of $250,000 for assistance. In addition to this, Cypress County has renewed their commitment to the HALO program with a new investment of $300,000 per year, over three years.

“This investment represents our commitment to a fair and equitable funding model of the HALO Program. Over the past 4 years Cypress County has benefited from having HALO respond to over 30 per cent of their annual calls for service within the county. Recognizing that, Council voted to contribute 30 per cent of the proposed regional municipality third.” says Dan Hamilton, Cypress County reeve.

Cypress County averaged 34.5 per cent of HALO calls for services between 2018 and 2021, which included EMS air ambulance calls as well as search and rescue, fire department support, law enforcement support, and disaster response.

Carolan says HALO is very grateful for Cypress County and their leadership and that the investment represents a significant step forward for their program.

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