The purchase of 6 medical helicopters is included in the National Recovery and Sustainability Plan (NRSP) which was officially approved by the European Commission (EC) and published yesterday, 6 April, on the website of the Council of Ministers. According to the plan, BGN 146 million are earmarked for the construction of an Emergency Medical System with helicopters.
At the core of the team that has undertaken the task of building the System are members of the Bulgarian Aviation Industry Association (BAIA). One of them is MP Georgi Gvozdeykov, who said:
“The most important step is to work out the concept for building the whole HEMS system. This is not an easy process! Create a working design and a team of people to execute it .”
The plan has five main pillars for funding the different projects: Green Transition and Digital Transformation; Smart, Sustainable and Inclusive Growth; Social and Territorial Cohesion; Health, Economic, Social and Institutional Sustainability; and Getting European money against targets and results. Total EU funding under the plan is worth €13.6 billion.
According to the PSP, the acquisition of 6 medical helicopters is for the purpose of “covering the country for the provision of emergency medical care in the golden hour”, including transporting patients to hospitals.
The PSP also envisages the establishment of Next Generation 112 Communication Centres with new state-of-the-art electronic network services, capable of real-time video, data, voice and text exchange.