Birmingham, AL – Alabama health officials say 10 counties will be added next month to the state's trauma communications system, and plans call for more expansion.
State trauma administrator Choona Lang says half of the state, including metro Birmingham, Huntsville and Mobile, is already covered by the system.
Beginning early next month, 10 counties in east Alabama will join the system.
Without such a system, health officials say about 60 percent of injured patients end up in a hospital that can't properly treat them, wasting valuable time when prompt treatment gives the best chance of survival from serious injury.
The state health department hopes to add metro Montgomery, west-central and southeast Alabama to complete the network by the end of the year.
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