The adoption of private equity is not just a predicament for the air ambulance industry but the entire healthcare system in the United States. Several financial institutions in the country have shown a keen interest in healthcare in recent times. There is no doubt that it makes the whole sector highly competitive with ready access to funds. However, what bothers most people is the profit motive of private equities. The healthcare and air ambulance industries being more human-centric, it does not seem right to most people that they are viewed as a source of profit. They opine that healthcare must be a pure welfare activity.
What’s the Air Ambulance Industry Got to Lose?
Many people believe that the high prices charged by air ambulance companies are directly a result of heavy private equity investment in them. Investors simply do not want to make any losses, even though the United States is flooded with several air medical transport companies, so much so that the consumer base is starting to look too small. This is causing more idle time for many companies. As a result, their costs are piling up and are being ultimately transferred to the customer.
Will the COVID-19 Pandemic Transform the Industry?
The COVID-19 pandemic has drastically cut down the demand for air ambulance services. The reason behind this is simple. The industry relies heavily on helicopters, which are not built to handle highly infectious diseases like COVID-19. The pandemic has given no adaption time to the air ambulance service providers. The lack of isolation between the crew and the infected patients, in addition to the sanitization needs, has made air medical transport not the best option, at least locally. However, they are still being utilized for international evacuations, although not large in numbers.
Experts opine that, if the prevailing low-demand situation persists, there are going to be several service providers who will be forced to shut down, creating a balance between the number of players in the market and the size of the market.
