What Pafford EMS does

Pafford EMS (legal name: Pafford Medical Services, Inc.) is a privately held, family-owned emergency medical services company founded in 1967 in Magnolia, Arkansas and now headquartered in Hope, Arkansas. The company operates across six states (Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Texas, and the U.S. Virgin Islands) from 185 locations, delivering ground ambulance, rotary-wing (Air One via Bell 407 helicopters in partnership with Air Methods Corporation), and fixed-wing (Air Med, King Air) air ambulance services, plus inter-facility, long-distance, and specialty/critical care patient transports. It cares for and transports more than 125,000 patients annually with a fleet of 60+ ambulance units and an integrated ZOLL-powered communications center supporting real-time dispatch, flight following, and an event-data-recorder fleet-monitoring system.

The business serves three primary customer types: government and municipal entities (fire departments, city and county governments) contracting for primary and backup 9-1-1 ALS response; hospitals and healthcare facilities (e.g., Vicksburg Hospital, Oklahoma Children's Hospital, Willow Creek Women's Hospital) contracting for inter-facility, critical care, and specialty care transfers; and end consumers via an annual EMS membership program that waives out-of-pocket ambulance costs for covered families. Ancillary revenue lines include Pafford Medical Billing Services (third-party EMS billing/collections), onsite contract staffing for industrial and free-standing clinics, and special event medical standby. Revenue is predominantly insurance reimbursement-driven (Medicare, Medicaid, private payers) supplemented by recurring membership fees and government contract payments.

Operationally, the company is led by CEO Jamie Pafford-Gresham (also chairperson of the American Ambulance Association's Government Affairs Committee) and Senior Vice President/COO Keith H. Carter, with Clay Hobbs as Executive Director. Strategic posture is expansionary: vertical integration through 2024 hospital acquisitions from the Steward Health Care bankruptcy, horizontal partnership-led growth (Valor EMS, April 2026), and clinical scope expansion via the May 2026 Low Titer O Whole Blood (LTOWB) prehospital transfusion program. The company has no disclosed AI/ML capabilities and faces a December 2025 third-party data security incident via TriZetto Provider Solutions affecting protected health information.

Name

Pafford EMS

Legal name

Pafford Medical Services, Inc.

Website

https://paffordems.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1967

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Pafford EMS is a family-owned, private emergency medical services company operating ground and air ambulance (rotary and fixed-wing) across 185 locations in six states, serving 125,000+ patients annually under government 9-1-1 contracts, hospital inter-facility agreements, and consumer memberships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Emergency Medical Services

NAICS

Ambulance Services (621910)

SIC

Services-Misc Health & Allied Services, Nec (8090)

akta.pro primary industry

Private EMS Providers (Contract/Interfacility) (HLAFANAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Emergency Medical Services (EMS) & Ambulance Services (BPAIAGAC), Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Operations & Dispatch (HLAJAGAC), 911/Public EMS Agencies (Municipal/County/Fire-Based) (HLAFANAA)

Keywords

• Emergency medical services
• Ground ambulance transport
• Air ambulance services
• Inter-facility patient transport
• EMS billing services

Headquarters

HQ city

Ruston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Emergency 9-1-1 Response Services: Ground and air emergency medical response services provided under contract to government entities and fire departments across six states
2. Inter-facility Medical Transportation: Patient transports between hospitals and medical facilities including critical care, specialty care, and ICU/CCU transfers
3. Air Ambulance Services: Rotary-wing (Air One) and fixed-wing (Air Med) critical care air ambulance services for emergency and inter-facility transports
4. Medical Billing Services: Ambulance billing and collections services for other EMS agencies, handling Medicaid, Medicare, and insurance claims
5. EMS Membership Program: Annual family memberships that cover out-of-pocket ambulance expenses for patients in service areas
6. Special Event Medical Standby: Professional medical standby services for large-scale community events including concerts, festivals, rodeos, and marathons

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Pafford EMS is a family-owned emergency medical services company providing ground and air ambulance services across six states. Core offerings include 9-1-1 emergency response, inter-facility patient transport, long-distance medical transport, helicopter (Air One) and fixed-wing (Air Med) air ambulance services, EMS medical billing and collections, onsite medical staffing, special event standby, and an EMS membership program. The company operates 185 locations and transports more than 125,000 patients annually.

Product overview

Pafford EMS is a family-owned and operated emergency medical services company offering a comprehensive portfolio of ground and air ambulance services across Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Texas, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The core offerings include 9-1-1 Response and Medical Transportation, Inter-facility Transportation, and Long-distance Medical Transportation for ground services, complemented by Air One (medical helicopter services) and Air Med (fixed wing air ambulance services) for aerial transport. Supporting services include Pafford Medical Billing Services for claims processing and collections, Onsite Contract Services for medical clinic staffing, Special Event Standby for community events, and an EMS Membership program for families. The company operates 185 locations, utilizes ZOLL-powered communications technology, and maintains a fleet that cares for and transports more than 125,000 patients annually.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Air One: Emergency helicopter medical services operating out of Ruston, LA (AirOne Alpha), Pine Bluff, AR (AirOne Echo), Clarksdale, MS (AirOne Delta), and additional bases
• Air Med
• Pafford Medical Billing Services

Products and services

• 9-1-1 Response & Medical Transportation Primary and back-up emergency 9-1-1 ground and air medical advanced life support (ALS) services provided under contract in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Oklahoma, plus urgent critical and specialty care transports. Targets municipal governments, fire departments, and rural emergency service districts.
• Inter-facility Transportation Regional, nationwide and international patient transports providing Basic Life Support, Advanced Life Support, and Critical Care/Specialty Care transports for ICU/CCU patients between hospitals and medical facilities. Targets hospitals and healthcare systems.
• Long-distance Medical Transportation Regional, interstate and international non-urgent long-distance patient transports combining ground ambulance and fixed-wing air ambulance services coordinated through Pafford's ZOLL-powered communications center. Targets healthcare systems with extended transport needs.
• Fixed Wing Air Ambulance Services - Air Med Regional, nationwide and international Critical Care Fixed Wing Ambulance Services operating King Air aircraft out of Fort Smith Regional Airport, AR, staffed 24/7 with flight nurse and flight paramedic. Targets patients and healthcare systems requiring long-distance critical care transport.
• Medical Helicopter Services - Air One Emergency helicopter service based across multiple bases including Ruston, LA (AirOne Alpha), Pine Bluff, AR (AirOne Echo), and Clarksdale, MS (AirOne Delta), providing a 100-mile emergency response radius and 150-mile inter-facility transfers using Bell 407 Helicopters in partnership with Air Methods Corporation. Includes Air-Standby Alert Program (ASAP) and NVG-capable flight deck.
• Pafford Medical Billing Services Outsourced ambulance billing and collections services navigating the complexities of state Medicaid and federal Medicare billing compliance requirements, electronic claims submissions, and follow-up for other EMS agencies. Targets third-party ambulance providers needing billing expertise.
• Onsite Contract Services Round-the-clock staffing and operational services for pop-up or long-term free-standing medical clinics, providing physicians, nurses, paramedics, EMTs, and industrial medical clinic staffing. Targets industrial operators, event organizers, and organizations needing temporary or permanent medical staffing.
• Special Event Standby Ground ambulance operations providing special event medical standby teams for large-scale community events including concerts, festivals, rodeos, and marathons. Includes motorized bike medic services, first aid stations, roving medics, and EMS exhibits. Targets event organizers, concert promoters, and venue operators.
• Pafford EMS Membership Annual membership program for families with children under age 25 in Pafford's service areas that mitigates out-of-pocket ambulance expenses by accepting insurance reimbursement and waiving remaining out-of-pocket balances for covered ambulance transports, including air ambulance membership where services are provided. Targets residents in service areas.

Quantifiable outcome

• 125,000+ patients transported annually
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Steward Health Care (Bankruptcy Acquisition)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Following Steward Health Care's 2024 bankruptcy, federal proceedings approved sales of affected facilities to non-private equity owners including Pafford Medical Services. Pafford acquired hospital facilities from Steward's defunct network, expanding healthcare delivery presence.
• Arkansas Rural Health Partnership (ARHP)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPafford is a member organization in this nonprofit coalition of 30+ healthcare organizations formed in 2008 to improve healthcare in rural communities. ARHP has trained 70 EMTs, 68 paramedics, and 8 community paramedics through emergency medical training programs.
• Air Methods CorporationcoreTechnology or IntegrationStrategic partnership with Air Methods Corporation for helicopter fleet operations. Pafford operates Bell 407 Helicopters in partnership with Air Methods, utilizing their infrastructure and support services for air ambulance operations.
• Valor EMScoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPafford Medical Services and Valor EMS aligned to provide 911 emergency medical services across Clark and Dallas Counties in Arkansas, announced April 2026.
• TriZetto Provider Solutions (TPS)minorOthersTPS is a third-party vendor used by Pafford for administrative and billing-related services. In late 2024/early 2025, TPS experienced a cybersecurity incident affecting protected health information of healthcare provider customers including Pafford.
• Delta Regional AuthorityminorOthersGovernment entity that supported ARHP emergency medical training programs, helping fund EMT and paramedic training initiatives.
• Healthcare Facilities and Hospital SystemscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPafford provides inter-facility patient transport services under contract with numerous hospitals and medical facilities across their six-state service area, including critical care, specialty care, and ICU/CCU transfers.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Acadian Ambulance Service: Family-owned private EMS operator headquartered in Louisiana with ground and air ambulance across the Gulf South. Closest direct comparable to Pafford in geography, ownership structure, and integrated service mix.
• Air Methods Corporation: Largest US air medical transport provider and current Bell 407 fleet partner of Pafford Air One. Direct comparable on rotor-wing operations, clinical capability, and hospital contracting model.
• PHI Air Medical: National air ambulance operator with significant presence in the Gulf South and Texas. Direct comparable on rotor-wing and fixed-wing air medical transport, including scene and inter-facility missions.
• Med-Trans Corporation: Air ambulance provider operating community-based rotor-wing programs across the US, partnered with hospital systems. Closely comparable to Pafford Air One on hospital-affiliated rotor-wing delivery model.
• Acadian Air Med / Air Med (Lafayette): Air ambulance arm of Acadian Companies in Louisiana. Direct comparable to Pafford Air One and Air Med on rotor-wing and fixed-wing operations in the Gulf South market.
• ProTransport-1: Private inter-facility ground ambulance operator primarily on the West Coast. Comparable to Pafford's inter-facility and critical care transport business model and contract-based GTM.
• REACH Air Medical Services: Air ambulance provider operating across the western US under Global Medical Response. Comparable to Pafford Air One and Air Med on rotor-wing and fixed-wing clinical transport capability and hospital contracting.

Broad incumbents

• American Medical Response (AMR): Largest private ambulance provider in the US, owned by Global Medical Response. Competes with Pafford on municipal 9-1-1 contracts and inter-facility transport but operates nationally at much greater scale.
• Global Medical Response: Parent of AMR and multiple air medical brands (Air Evac, REACH, Guardian). Broad incumbent in both ground and air EMS, competing for 9-1-1 and inter-facility contracts nationwide.

Regional players

• LifeNet Air Medical Services: Air medical provider based in Texarkana serving Arkansas, Texas, Louisiana, and Oklahoma. Geographic and service-line peer of Pafford Air One across overlapping four-state region.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses2 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/paffordmedical
• Facebookfacebook.com/PaffordMedicalServices
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/pafford-ems

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Pafford EMS