Support needed for SB 3126
We are reaching out to ask the public to provide testimony in support of state Senate Bill 3126, which will be heard at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, March 19.
Support for this program is critical for Hawaii Island’s aeromedical program, as we need operational funding for the new Airbus H145 that the Daniel R. Sayre Memorial Foundation will be gifting to Hawaii County in December 2025.
This potentially $16 million medical helicopter (we are still working on the details) is a tremendous gift to our island community and has the potential of saving countless lives in Hawaii. Because we are receiving the H145 within a year and a half, we need to start the operational program as soon as possible in order to have all of the certification and training completed by the time this aircraft arrives.
The program proposed in SB3126 is a total game-changer for our entire state and our opportunity to provide critical care patients with life-saving transport.
Instead of the seven- to eight-hour delay of fixed wing aircraft, this helicopter could have a critical care patient from our island to Queen’s Medical Center within one-and-a-half to two hours and could help to avoid multiple ambulance transfers, as the patient would be flown directly from our hospitals to the heliport on the top of Queen’s, as an example.
This aircraft will also be capable of nighttime rescues.
We are counting on all of you to help us to make this operational funding possible! To submit testimony, visit: https://tinyurl.com/3xmkueeu. Testimony has to be in 24 hours before this meeting.
Every positive letter of support is extremely important to the passing of this bill.
Laura Mallery-Sayre, executive director for the Daniel R. Sayre Memorial Foundation
Dr. Frank Sayre, president