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UPDATE:
President Vetoes Bill with Important Funding for Health Care and Education
Projects in Colorado
WASHINGTON,
DC – Today, with the stroke of his pen, President Bush vetoed
the Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2008 which
contained over $4.6 million in funding for several important health
care and education projects in Colorado requested by United States Senator
Ken Salazar.
“I am very disappointed
that the President vetoed this bill with important funding for projects
that will make immediate differences in the quality of life for Colorado
families,” said Senator Salazar. “These are critical
projects that will benefit thousands of people in Colorado by providing
better health care, enabling important research at medical facilities
and educational institutions, and address substance abuse in our communities.
I will continue to do what I can to ensure that these projects can become
a reality.”
The Colorado projects funded
at the request of Senator Salazar were:
- $300,000 for
Mercy Health Foundation in La Plata County to expand its
primary care and prevention services for the elderly, children and
underserved, filling a major gap left by the departure of Valley Wide;
- $450,000 for
Denver Health in Denver, the only major trauma center to
care for the majority of low-income and uninsured individuals in Denver,
to immediately expand and upgrade their facility;
- $85,000 for the
Health District of Northern Larimer County to help build
a Combined Services Center in Larimer County for mental and substance
abuse treatment services. Currently, admissions to Larimer County’s
“Detox Unit” are growing at a rate of five to 10 percent each year,
straining the County’s budget and facilities;
- $85,000 for St.
Joseph’s Hospital in Denver to help fund its Mobile Mammography
Program, which has screened over 3,000 uninsured women for breast
cancer.
- $170,000 for
the San Luis Valley Regional Medical Center in Alamosa to
help purchase software for its information technology system upgrade,
which will improve patient care in its pharmacy, laboratory, radiology
and nursing departments.
- $125,000 for
the Northwest Colorado Visiting Nurse Association based in Steamboat
Springs
to help pay for capital improvements (including operating costs, equipment
purchases and furnishings) for primary care facilities in Walden,
Hayden, and Craig.
- $45,000 for Aims
Community College in Greeley to purchase equipment for its
new Allied Health and Science learning facility, which will help train
students in fields with a high demand for health professionals. Between
2003 and 2006, Aims increased its degree and certificate programs
in allied health fields from one to six in an effort to meet local
and state demands.
- $320,000 for
The Children’s Hospital to help with its re-location from
downtown Denver to the redevelopment at the former Fitzsimons Army
Medical Campus in Aurora.
- $254,250 for
CU-Denver Health Sciences Center to establish a Linda Crnic
Institute for Research and Treatment of Down Syndrome (LCI) on the
Anschutz Campus in Aurora, and to attract faculty who will focus on
the full spectrum, from basic research, clinical research, clinical
care and treatment of children, adolescents and adults with Down’s
Syndrome at the state, regional and National level.
- $169,500 for
the Colorado School of Mines in Golden to develop the Mine
Safety and Rescue through Sensing Networks and Robotics Technology
(Mine-SENTRY) system for mining safety applications, focusing on sensors
and sensor networks, improving mine communications and predicting
and reducing the risks and hazards of mining operations.
- $127,000 for
Fort Lewis College in Durango to create an entrepreneurship
center within the School of Business Administration. The center will
bring and the regional community together and encourage them to form
partnerships that foster creativity and enhance regional economic
development.
- $300,000 for
the Allied Jewish Federation of Colorado for a naturally
occuring retirement communities demonstration project. This funding
will allow for the expansion of two retirement communities for low-income
seniors: Crestmoor Downs and Allied Jewish Apartments, both in Denver.
- $100,000 for
Jefferson County for a child abuse prevention and treatment
program. This program will focus on early intervention and specialized
treatment plans aimed at encouraging families to utilize support systems
within their own communities.
- $320,000 for
Avista Adventist Hospital for an electronic medical record
system that will unify the hospital, a community health clinic, the
county health department, and private physicians. The program will
enable physicians to electronically access the records and lab tests
of patients, avoid duplication of services, and improve the quality
of health care.
- $300,000 for
Colorado State University for a Combined PET/CT Scanner.
This cutting-edge machine is a valuable tool in the diagnosis and
treatment of neurological, cardiovascular, and bone disease, as well
as cancer.
- $150,000 for
Healing Tree Addiction Treatment Solutions, Inc. for the
Northeast Colorado Substance Abuse Collaborative. Currently, the northeast
corner of Colorado does not have a regional alcohol and substance
abuse detoxification/treatment center, and residents who receive treatment
in other areas of Colorado receive services only and have no connection
to local service agencies once they return to northeast Colorado.
The collaborative will bring law enforcement, social service, hospital
and other medical providers in the region together to provide these
residents with the support they need.
- $440,000 for
St. Mary’s Hospital Foundation in Grand Junction for the
Saccomanno Education Center. The center is part of a planned hospital
expansion called the “Century Project,” and funds will be used to
purchase new equipment and provide training for physicians, nurses,
technicians, first responders, patients, and the general public.
- $450,000 for
the University of Northern Colorado for the National Center
for Nursing Education. The center will provide academic programs in
nursing education, provide professional development opportunities
for nurse educators, and establish a National Nursing Education Research
Center.
- $500,000 for
the National Jewish Medical and Research Center for the Center
for Environmental Research. These funds will go toward the construction
of the center, which will house research on clinical studies on patients
with respiratory and immune diseases. Special focus will be placed
on eradicating environmental and occupational illness in the Rocky
Mountain region. The center will serve as a regional resource on the
delivery of environmental clinical health services.
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