Lifeflight of Maine LLC
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
LifeFlight's vision for Maine is a place in which every person, in every community, has access to critical care and medical transport when they need it.Our mission is to transform the critical care transport medicine system into an integrated, high-quality, patient-centered system worthy of the public's trust.LifeFlight provides critical care and specialized medical transport by air and ground ambulances to the entire State of Maine and under mutual aid to hospitals and EMS agencies in New Hampshire, Vermont, and Massachusetts.LifeFlight is licensed by the State of Maine and State of New Hampshire, and it is accredited by the Commission for the Accreditation of Medical Transport Systems. It is a member of the Association of Critical Care Transport, the Vertical Association International, the Association of Air Medical Services, and the Maine Ambulance Association.
- Income
- $33.9 million
- Spending
- $30.1 million
- Spent on programs
- 86%
- Reserves
- 1.4 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- fees for its services, 88%
- Employees
- 132
- Volunteers
- 30
- Highest pay
- $273,370, chief executive officer
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Good: 71 out of 100. Higher than 41% of charities in its peer group (public safety and disaster relief, $10m to $100m).
Reserves
10 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 1.4 months of spending.
Debt
16 of 20It owes 28% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 11% of income.
Income trend
15 of 15Income rose 25% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1586% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 26 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 47% of charities in its peer group (public safety and disaster relief, $10m to $100m).
Independent board
25 of 258 of 9 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
8 of 8Has a written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
7 of 7Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
10 of 10Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
5 of 5Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.
Independent check of accounts
15 of 15Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Impact evidence
Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.
Programs described in its return (1)
- $25.8 million spent. LifeFlight of Maine had safely transported over 40,000 patients at the end of fiscal year 2025. LifeFlight continues to focus on its values, which include uncompromising standards for safety, for clinical excellence, for each mission, and for our team. In Fiscal Year 2025, LifeFlight employed those values in the transport of 2,876 patients. Of these patients, 1,027 were transported by ground ambulance, 256 by airplane, and 1,864 by helicopter. This represents a 12.1% increase in total volume from the prior year. 271 of these patients were transported by a combination of ground and air assets.Continued on Schedule OContinued from Part III, Line 4aLifeFlight transports patients needing the most advanced critical care transport available, and does so using helicopters, an airplane, and ground ambulances. The Organization works tirelessly to keep costs low while delivering the safest and highest-quality care possible. We do this through a lean management structure and modest facilities while simultaneously investing heavily in our teams, our vehicles, education, and safety. To successfully fulfill its mission, LifeFlight of Maine relies on generous philanthropic support for strategic initiatives and capital equipment. These contributions are raised by The LifeFlight Foundation, without which LifeFlight would not be able to do what it does at the level it does it. In Fiscal Year 2025, LifeFlight wrote off $2,662,313 in bad debt (a 45.1% increase from the prior year), and $240,712 in charity care (a 23% decrease increase from the prior year). LifeFlight continues to offer a robust and industry-leading charity care program. The organization prides itself in ethical collection practices and works closely with patients that have out of pocket responsibility to create reasonable payment plans. We pride ourselves in advocating for our patients from the moment we are entrusted with their care. This includes clinically and financially. LifeFlight seeks to be "in network" with all major commercial payers. In the few instances in which LifeFlight is not in network, patients are never "balance billed" for amounts beyond their plan deductibles, copays, and coinsurance. The Organization has a service contract in place with Northern Light Eastern Maine Medical Center (NL-EMMC), an unrelated organization, under which EMMC provides LOM with Medical Direction and nursing services. This agreement remains in effect and allows the sharing of nursing and paramedic staff between EMMC and LOM. The Organization has a service contract in place with Central Maine Medical Center (CMMC), an unrelated organization (owned by a related organization, Central Maine Healthcare Corporation), under which LOM received Medical Direction Services, which were provided by Dr. Peter Tilney, a CMMC employee. An Aviation Operator Designed for MaineLifeFlight of Maine is the sole member of LifeFlight Aviation Services, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of LifeFlight of Maine. LifeFlight Aviation Services is certificated by the Federal Aviation Administration as a "Part 135 Air Carrier." Operating aircraft requires completion of a robust process to receive an operating certificate, in which the FAA provides substantial oversight and surveillance to ensure safe and compliant operations. LifeFlight's customized program is purpose built for Maine and includes special procedures for Maine's unique operating environment.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending June 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.
Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.
Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.
Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.
On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending June 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since August 2005.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.
Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.
Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated October 21, 2026.
Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.