By David Wren
The Sun News
Copyright 2008 The Sun News
HORRY COUNTY, S.C. — A competing emergency medical helicopter service settled its lawsuit with the parent company of Horry County-based Carolina Lifecare on Monday, one week before a federal judge was to rule on whether this area’s primary air medical transporter could continue flying.
Monday’s settlement agreement between Medserv Air Medical Transport LLC and Omniflight Helicopters Inc., Carolina Lifecare’s parent, brings an end to a bitter, nearly two-year legal battle over who has the right to fly Grand Strand patients to trauma centers.
Both sides agreed to keep the terms of the settlement confidential, so it is not immediately clear whether Carolina Lifecare’s operations will be affected.
Ron Reid, Omniflight’s regional manager, declined to comment.
Horry County spokeswoman Lisa Bourcier said Carolina Lifecare has not notified county officials about any impending changes in service or location.
Medserv, in its lawsuit, had claimed Omniflight violated the terms of a non-compete agreement when it opened Carolina Lifecare’s facility in Conway on Sept. 11, 2005.
Omniflight had agreed not to establish service within 90 miles of Medserv, which had a base in Manning.
Carolina Lifecare’s facility was within 90 miles of that Manning base.
This is the second time Omniflight has signed a settlement agreement related to this lawsuit.
In the first agreement, signed in November 2006, Omniflight said it would close Carolina Lifecare’s facility in Conway and abide by the 90-mile non-compete rule.
Omniflight also agreed to pay Medserv $150,000 in damages and as much as $50,000 in attorney’s fees.
About one month after signing that agreement, Carolina Lifecare moved its facility from Conway to Myrtle Beach International Airport.
Medserv went back to court in February 2007, claiming Omniflight violated the settlement agreement because the Myrtle Beach site was within 90 flight miles of Manning.
A judge agreed and ordered Omniflight to comply with the settlement terms.
Omniflight appealed the decision and was allowed to continue operating until that appeal was heard.
That hearing would have been held next week in Columbia if the settlement had not been reached.
Omniflight lawyer Theresa Canaday did not respond to requests for comment.
Medserv lawyer Hamilton Osborne said he could not discuss terms of the agreement because “the parties agreed to keep them confidential.”
A key issue in the lawsuit was Medserv’s contention that Carolina Lifecare flies some patients to trauma centers to boost revenue, not because those patients need specialized care.
Carolina Lifecare officials deny the accusations.
Administrators at trauma centers in the Carolinas filed affidavits stating that Carolina Lifecare made unnecessary transports and failed to notify hospitals in advance of bringing patients.
Court documents show McLeod Regional Medical Center in Florence dropped its trauma rating in 2006 specifically to stop Carolina Lifecare from bringing patients that administrators there said could have been treated at Grand Strand hospitals.
That move left eastern South Carolina without a Level II trauma center.
A Carolina Lifecare official said the allegations are partly sour grapes by a competing helicopter service that lost business and medical officials who are resistant to change.
Matthew Smith, battalion chief of medical operations for Horry County Fire Rescue, said Carolina Lifecare has saved an untold number of lives. A review of helicopter transports since 2005 showed just three that might have been unnecessary.
“Three is too many, but if that’s what I have to take to have this program, I’ll take it,” Smith said.
Medserv was a patient transport service for Palmetto Health Richland hospital in Columbia. That service now is operated by Air Methods Corp. under the name LifeNet South Carolina.
Addison, Texas-based Omniflight operates emergency helicopter services in 16 states.