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In the interest of speed and timeliness, this story is fed directly from the Associated Press newswire and may contain spelling or grammatical errors.
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Fresno State's health policy institute to receive $4 million grant
Tuesday June 17, 2003
By BRIAN SKOLOFF
Associated Press Writer
FRESNO, Calif. (AP) A new health policy institute based at
California State University, Fresno is getting a monetary boost to
help it make health care a priority in the San Joaquin Valley.
The Central Valley Health Policy Institute has been awarded a
five-year, $4 million grant from The California Endowment, a
private health advocacy group that awards grants to community
organizations across the state.
The grant is scheduled to be announced Wednesday by Dr. Robert
K. Ross, president of The Endowment, and university President John
D. Welty.
The institute was established in April 2002 to serve as a source
for health policy information in Fresno, Kern, Kings, Madera,
Merced and Tulare counties. University officials say they want the
institute, which could eventually offer graduate level health
policy courses through Fresno State, to be a major player in
helping the San Joaquin Valley meet its long-term health care
objectives.
``Despite well-documented health disparities in the central San
Joaquin Valley, there is no health policy vehicle within the region
dedicated to studying the health care system or the impact of
current and proposed public policies on the region,'' Ross said in
a statement a day before the announcement. ``The institute will
serve to fill the void.''
The valley's health care problems have not gone unnoticed. Rep.
Devin Nunes, R-Tulare, convened a rural health care summit in May
at Visalia, calling the valley's health care situation a
``crisis.'' Nunes was joined by Dr. Cristina Beato, deputy
assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services.
Nunes has said hospitals throughout the valley face a severe
shortage of doctors and nurses, and many physicians are reluctant
to settle here because of the large number of MediCal patients and
low state and federal reimbursement rates. Experts say poverty also
plays a role in the valley's health disparities.
According to a study conducted by the Modesto-based Great Valley
Center, more than one-quarter of the children in the Central Valley
are living below the poverty level, and 26,000 children under the
age of four do not have health insurance.
On The Net:
The California Endowment: www.calendow.org.
Fresno State news: www.fresnostatenews.com
(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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