As someone who works in the pediatric care system in Maine, I can tell you that only a small portion of sick kids in Maine need to be transferred to Boston. The Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital in Portland has a PICU, congenital open heart surgery program, a NICU kidney transplant service, and a comprehensive children’s cancer program. There is a relatively short list of conditions for which transfer to Boston or other centers is needed, including bone cancers, stem cell transplants, or liver or lung transplants.