Newfoundland Labrador (Feb 10, 2026) – Hope Air announces record-breaking 2025 impact results in the province. In 2025, Hope Air supported 896 patient and escort trips for Newfoundlanders & Labradorians, representing 3406 medical travel arrangements. This includes over 1472 airline flights, 1142 nights of accommodation, 399 hotel meal vouchers, and 393 airport ground transportation trips.

Patient demand for Hope Air programs soared in 2025. Hope Air delivered 57% more travel arrangements in 2025 than in the prior year, and more than 4.5 times the number of travel arrangements delivered in the province as compared to just 3 years ago.

For thousands of Newfoundlanders & Labradorians, timely access to critical health care depends upon one essential element: the ability to afford the costs of long-distance travel. This includes patients travelling from Labrador, the Northern Peninsula and Western NL to St. John’s, as well as patients from across the province who must leave the province for specialty medical care not available at home. In 2025 Hope Air served residents from over 77 communities across the province, from Margaree to Bay Bulls, Burin to Cartwright.

“Hope Air’s ability to support more than 3406 medical travel arrangements in a single year, is only made possible through the commitment of generous donors and our ongoing partnership with the Government of Newfoundland & Labrador,” said Mark Rubinstein, Chief Hope Officer. “Hope Air was launched 40 years ago, inspired by the need of so many Canadians, including those living in rural communities across Newfoundland & Labrador, who are unable to afford the costs of long-distance travel to reach critical medical care.”

Hope Air is a national charity providing non-emergency medical travel support to patients in financial need who must access specialty medical care far from home, all booked in advance at no cost to patients. Founded in 1986, Hope Air enters its 40th year of service with a singular mission: ensuring equitable access to health care for Canadians who would otherwise be unable to afford travel costs. By removing barriers of distance and expense, Hope Air helps patients in rural and underserved communities access life-saving diagnosis and treatment far from home sooner—improving health outcomes and reducing stress for families already facing a medical crisis.

“Living in Labrador, it’s common to have to travel for almost every specialist appointment or wait until a specialist visits the local hospital. Even the next closest hospital in our province is over 600 km away. This is a reality that not everyone fully grasps.” explains Billie, mother to 9-year-old Hope Air Patient Savannah from Labrador City. “Hope Air is truly incredible, always going above and beyond. They understand the challenges we face with travel and how unpredictable medical appointments can be.”

Hope Air is supported by generous private sector foundations, corporations and individuals. In Newfoundland & Labrador, an investment from the Northpine Foundation has been particularly transformational in the ability of the charity to meet patient demand and scale in recent years.

In 2025, Hope Air and the Department of Labrador Affairs announced a pilot reimbursement through the Medical Transportation Assistance Program (MTAP). This pilot program has enabled Hope Air to assist more individuals and families in need of support and strengthened the government’s commitment to deliver equitable access to health care. This pilot delivers medical travel support programs by removing the barriers of cost, travel logistics, and paperwork for many of the province’s most vulnerable and low-income residents.

“Access to health care is an important priority, regardless of where people live. For 40 years, Hope Air has played a role in supporting patients across the province,” says the Honourable Lela Evans, Minister of Labrador Affairs, Minister of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation, and Minister of Health and Community Services. “Through the Medical Transportation Assistance Program, we value opportunities to collaborate in ways that support access to specialized insured health services. Our government remains focused on improving access to health care and addressing challenges faced by Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, particularly in rural areas.”

Background Information:
Hope Air is Canada’s national charity providing free non-emergency travel support for Canadians in financial need who must access medical care far from home. Hope Air programs are provided to eligible individuals and families 100% free of cost, including roundtrip airline tickets, hotel accommodations, meals, and airport ground transportation. All travel expenses are paid for in advance by Hope Air, with all travel bookings (and any required changes) managed by Hope Air staff.

Since its inception in 1986, Hope Air has provided more than 250,000 travel arrangements across the country for patients regardless of age or medical need. For people living on a low income in rural and underserved communities, distance and cost are very real barriers to accessing vital medical care. Hope Air is a unique and essential part of the Canadian healthcare system.

Hope Air is accredited by Imagine Canada, which recognizes exemplary governance and reporting standards in the charitable sector.

Travel assistance is provided for all provincially recognized medical conditions when diagnosis or specialty care is unavailable in the patient’s community, such as treatment for cancer, cardiovascular disease, organ transplants, pediatric conditions, nervous system disorders, diabetes, musculoskeletal conditions, reproductive disorders, and pediatric conditions.

The average median gross household income of a Hope Air patient in NL is $30,000. Hope Air’s programs support low-income and vulnerable individuals and families, including children, seniors, people with disabilities and single-parent families.

The average cost for a patient and their escort to travel long distance for medical treatment in NL was over $3200 last year. Over 50% of Hope Air patients require an escort to travel including children and seniors with mobility or other issues.

Hope Air patients report a 36% decrease in hospital admissions and 27% decrease in emergency room visits, due to timely access to medical diagnosis and treatment provided through Hope Air travel programs.

Without Hope Air, low-income patients would be forced into debt or deplete their savings to pay for essential travel services. The majority of Hope Air patients would delay or cancel their medical appointments due to cost, leading to poor health outcomes.

Equitable access to health care is directly related to life expectancy. Delays in accessing treatment are associated with significantly worse survival rates.

People seeking support for medical travel can apply online to Hope Air at hopeair.ca or call 1-877-346-4673

Interview Opportunities Available.
For Further Information:
Jodi Lumsden
Director of Marketing & Communications
Jlumsden@hopeair.ca