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From the Office of Utah Congressman Jim Matheson

MATHESON NEWS
Second Congressional District

For Further Information
Alyson Heyrend: (801) 455-5593 (cell)
www.house.gov/matheson

November 6, 2007
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Matheson Secures Funding for Community Health Centers

Washington D.C.-- Congressman Jim Matheson said projects benefiting Utah’s Community Health Centers receive funding in the final version of the annual Labor, Health and Human Services (HR 3043) spending measure that is scheduled to pass the House Tuesday.

“In the more rural areas of our state, community health centers are often the only option for Utah families in need of health care services.  The dedicated and caring health care providers in community health centers offer treatment, monitoring and wellness services that many Utah parents and children cannot find elsewhere. They are a life-saving component of Utah’s health care system,” said Matheson.

Matheson said he secured funding for the following:

  • $196,650 to purchase electronic health record software licenses for 128 health care professionals within the Association for Utah Community Health. This enables community health centers throughout Utah to transition to electronic records systems.
  • $140,000 for the Utah Navajo Health System’s “tele-health program”, for purchase of Voice-Over-Internet-Protocol capabilities to help doctors and patients in remote locations connect with health care clinicians.

Matheson said the legislation also includes more than $29 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH)—the major federal funder of health research-- and $6.6 billion for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). That total includes $1.6 billion for terrorism preparedness and response.  It also includes approximately $16 billion for the education programs for low-income children, and $12.4 billion for special education programs.

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Alyson Heyrend
Communications Director
240 East Morris Ave. #235
South Salt Lake, UT 84115
(801) 486-1236 (phone)
(801) 455-5593 (cell)
(801) 486-1417 (fax)