Olivia Jones’s family in remote Eagle, Alaska, prepares for emergencies: Fairbanks is nearly nine hours away, and the road closes for much of winter. Local health aides assess cases; weather can ground medevac flights, while the mail plane serves less urgent hospital trips.
Jones puts the cost of a medevac flight at $60,000 one way. Bad weather or darkness can prevent flights, leaving patients at the local clinic until conditions improve. For a hospital trip that is not immediately life-threatening, she says she would take the weekday mail plane for $170 one way, paid out of pocket.
The family prepares by learning skills such as CPR and stopping bleeding, and Jones takes online courses. After cutting a finger while processing moose meat, she cleaned and wrapped it herself and plans to seek help from clinic health aides if signs of infection appear. Doctors and dentists also visit the community periodically for routine appointments.
