DHHS Hopes to Use EVTOL Magic to Reinforce Outlying Communities During Emergencies

BETA Technologies has been given a $20 million contract with the Department of Health and Human Services, kicking off a pilot program "to evaluate next-generation mobility solutions and infrastructure as a means of powering public health preparedness."

Under the contract, BETA will install electric aircraft chargers at areas of concern that could conceivably require emergent healthcare and mobility along the East and Gulf Coasts. The hope is that BETA's eVTOL gear will bring an entirely new dynamic of mobility to those facing the worst of mother nature, thanks to their unique blend of affordable running costs, quiet operation, light weight, and accessible operational requirements. At least, all those elements relative to emergency helicopters. But the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) isn't letting assumptions guide their policy decisions, putting BETA's big talk to the test with some good old fashioned demonstrations. They will add the chargers to the Emergency Preparedness Platform (EPP), a  multimodal and interoperable approach to infrastructure.

BETA will be adding 22 more locations to its current network of chargers, numbering 31 in all across Georgia, Florida, Mississippi, Alabama, and Arkansas. They have more than 50 in various stages of construction too. BETA's charger units have been selected by a mix of operators and customers, thanks to a more open-ended standard. Even rival eVTOL developers like Archer Aviation have signed on for BETA charging.

The Department of Health & Human Services sees eVTOL ops as a golden opportunity to bolster medical support on the fringe, too. Even outside of emergencies, things don't run quite so smoothly out in the sticks. They note that current transportation and infrastructure's record isn't too great - take organ transport, for example. In a 5-year span from 2014 to 2019, almost 170 organs could not be effectively used in their designated recipients, since their window of transport had been stretched too far by weather and cost. Almost 370 met the same fate, where they almost timed out on the tarmac after experiencing delays of 2 hours or more, rendering them a danger to their would-be recipients.

“We expect this work with BETA to give ASPR and other federal partners the ability to get vital materials and equipment to ground zero when other land-based modes of transportation are unavailable,” said Arlene Joyner, director of ASPR’s Office of Industrial Base Management and Supply Chain.

“The past few years have highlighted just how critical reliable and sustainable medical transport and emergency preparedness are,” said Kyle Clark, BETA’s Founder and CEO.

“HHS and ASPR are on the front lines of these issues and we’re excited to be working with them on meaningful, capital-efficient solutions that benefit the public. We believe this work has the potential to increase access to healthcare and essential services for all types of geographies, including the historically harder-to-reach ones.”

FMI: www.beta.team