Specialist
Former VP at Air Methods Corp
Agenda
- Recent US air ambulance industry trends and developments
- No Surprises Act implications in 2022 on top-line revenues
- Controlled misses' impact on margins and ability to reduce these operational challenges
- Air Methods' (NASDAQ: AIRM) ability to cut costs and preserve capital
- Competitive dynamics and relative positioning vs other key players, including GMR, PHI Air and Air Medical
- 2022 outlook – further consolidation and industry recovery
Questions
1.
What are some of the most important trends or developments you’ve monitored in the air ambulance sector over the past year or so?
2.
What is the current volume environment for air ambulance companies? What uptake has there been in transportation and what do you believe is driving the increase? How sustainable is this volume tailwind?
3.
Are there still increases in pandemic-related costs such as greater expenditure on PPE [personal protective equipment], pandemic protocols and so on? How material are these operating costs generally?
4.
Could you discuss how the No Surprises Act – set to effect on 1 January 2022 – will impact Air Methods as well as the overall air ambulance industry?
5.
Could you provide an approximate breakdown for Air Methods in between going in-network vs out-of-network, at least before the No Surprises Act?
6.
What’s been Air Methods’ typical reimbursement mix across Medicare, Medicaid, commercial and self-pay, and how do the relative rates of reimbursement differ?
7.
What’s the state of the staffing environment for Air Methods and other air ambulance players? Are there shortages for pilots, EMTs or other groups? To what extent has pandemic burn-out exacerbated labour pressures?
8.
Why do you think Global Medical Response’s subscription revenue is at risk? Is it due to some of the aforementioned regulatory headwinds or simply because customers are feeling they no longer need a subscription?
9.
What’s the financial impact of controlled misses on revenues on a monthly or annualised basis, and how much of an issue are controlled misses for Air Methods specifically?
10.
What can Air Methods do to reduce its high capital expense cost structure? Are there any variable costs or operational levers that can be pulled to help preserve margins?
11.
How are you considering Air Methods’ acquisitive appetite over the next year or so? What strategic targets might the company pursue to facilitate inorganic growth?
12.
How do you anticipate some of these M&A dynamics to materialise in 2022? Do you think Air Methods might explore a sale? Who might be some likely strategic buyers from a synergistic or strategic standpoint for perhaps Air Methods or PHI, perhaps walking us through the scenario implications?
