On the recordFebruary 17, 2011
I rise today to introduce the Community Hospital Jobs Act of 2011, legislation that gives Fairmont General Hospital, a small community hospital in West Virginia, the chance to make an important transition. Many of Marion County's residents were born at Fairmont General Hospital--founded in 1939. And many of the hospital's 700 employees are from the surrounding area. That is why, when Fairmont's leaders told me the hospital was going to lose a large portion of its Medicare payments because it was going to lose its status as a Sole Community Hospital, I knew it was important to make sure Fairmont General maintained its role as a vibrant health care leader in our community--and I began looking for ways to help. Over the last couple of years, I have worked extensively with Fairmont officials and with other members of the West Virginia delegation to identify possible solutions to Fairmont's problem, which the hospital did nothing to cause.
