Lee County grounds medical helicopters for failing safety standards
Copyright 2012 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Posted: 09/27/2012
SARASOTA, Fla. - Lee County has grounded two county-owned medical helicopters and fired the pilots because the emergency medical service used to airlift patients failed to meet federal safety requirements.
The Sarasota Herald-Tribune (http://bit.ly/RiTbW5) reports that the Bayflite helicopter and crew based in Sarasota County is now temporarily, and indefinitely, available to handle medical emergencies in Lee County.
Earlier in September, Lee County officials said they violated federal rules by billing patients for $2.9 million they shouldn't have for medical flights.
Lee County Public Safety Chief Kim Dickerson, in an email to county commissioners, said the county failed to meet federal safety standards required to bill patients.
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Information from: Sarasota (Fla.) Herald-Tribune, http://www.heraldtribune.com
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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