NEW YORK STATE – Advocates say that every day a piece of legislation awaits Governor Cuomo signature, lives could be at risk.

Legislation that would allow medical helicopters to carry blood and perform transfusions passed the Senate and Assembly last month, but needs Cuomo’s approval to become law.

The story of Binghamton resident Travis Flanagan inspired many lawmakers who worked on the bill.
Flanagan was in a horrific farming accident in March that lead to both of his legs being amputated.

By a stroke of luck, the New York-based medevac chopper was unavailable, so Guthrie Air out of Sayre, Pennsylvania was dispatched.

Flanagan, who works as a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist, believes the blood Guthrie Air had on board saved his life.

“I think about the people prior to me, the people prior to me that possibly could have been helped by this. And I was lucky that day. The whole point is to take luck out of the equation. And we still have luck in the equation now so it makes me feel very impatient and kind of uneasy,” says Flanagan.

Flanagan has enlisted the assistance of his colleagues in the New York State Association of Nurse Anesthetists in raising awareness of the issue and lobbying the Governor to sign the legislation.

Meanwhile, Flanagan has been fitted for prosthetic legs with a goal of being able to stand for the birth of his third child who is due on July 15th.