(Washington,
D.C.) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray received thanks for her 
efforts to
save the Wenatchee Valley Medical Center and Hospital. Dr. David Weber, CEO of
the Wenatchee Valley Medical Center presented Murray with a plaque on behalf of
patients and employees, thanking her for her advocacy on behalf of the medical
center and hospital.
“I’m
proud to continue fighting to keep the Wenatchee Valley Medical Center open,” said Senator Murray. “For families in the Wenatchee
area these clinics are the only way to access health care without driving for
miles. I’m committed to ensuring that citizens in rural communities get the
care they need.”
Senator
Murray successfully fought to include
compromise language in the 2008 Senate Supplemental Appropriations
bill that protected Wenatchee Valley Hospital and the clinics it operates from
a provision in that bill that would have caused the center to restructure,
merge, or close its doors. Senator Murray’s language exempts hospitals that are
currently 40% or more physician–owned, like Wenatchee Valley, from a provision
in the bill that bars Medicare and Medicaid payments to privately owned
hospitals.
Since
the initial inclusion of the language in the 2008 Supplemental Appropriations
bill, Senator Murray has continued working to protect the Wenatchee Valley
Medical Center by ensuring the inclusion of the compromise language in
legislation such as health care reform.
The
Wenatchee Valley Medical Center operates eight rural clinics in the Wenatchee
Valley, bringing approximately 1,790 jobs to the area. The provision to end
federal support for physician-owned hospitals included in health care reform
would have spelled the end of many of those clinics without the exception
Murray included.
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