[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 118 (Tuesday, September 9, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1695]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     HAPPY 25TH BAY MEDICAL CENTER

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JAMES A. BARCIA

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, September 9, 1997

  Mr. BARCIA. Mr. Speaker, access to quality primary and emergency 
health care is a great need for all Americans. The people of the Bay 
City community have had the good fortune to have enjoyed the 
professional care offered by Bay Medical Center for the past 25 years. 
As the center celebrates its 25th anniversary, I want to share with our 
colleagues some of the great accomplishments of this most impressive 
and needed facility.
  Bay Medical Center came about as a result of the merger between Mercy 
Hospital and General Hospital in 1972. This merger was needed to bring 
these two facilities into a better position to provide the quality 
health care that people deserve. Under the leadership of Ralph Powell, 
chairman of the board, the merger successfully went forward, resulting 
in the 1974 construction of a state-of-the-art facility that provides 
vital care for thousands of patients today. This facility was due to 
the aggressive campaign that brought together hospital employees, small 
businesses, corporations, and individual donors who all wanted to 
ensure quality health care for the future.
  Today, patients receive the most modern care possible at the 
facility, when appropriate, and receive high-quality outpatient care 
that previously was provided only to patients in the facility. The 
merger that started the center in 1972 was followed by mergers with 
Samaritan Hospital in 1980, and Bay Osteopathic Hospital in 1988. Under 
the lead organization of Bay Health Systems, Bay Medical Center joined 
with Bay Health Care, Bay Medical Services, Bay Medical Foundation, Bay 
Medical Education, and Bay Special Care in providing a broad and 
effective blend of services. A new alliance with MidMichigan Regional 
Medical Center will further increase efficiencies and promote an even 
stronger array of health care services for people of the region.
  Bay Medical Center has succeeded because it has been blessed with a 
large number of doctors, nurses, medical technicians, physician 
assistants, administrators, and a support staff that cares about the 
work that they all do each and every day. Its board members, who serve 
without compensation, have truly committed themselves to the center's 
mission statement of providing compassionate, high-quality, and cost-
effective health care, which maintains and improves the health status 
of the communities it serves.
  On this 25th anniversary, I invite you, Mr. Speaker, and all of our 
colleagues, to join me in offering congratulations to Hans Jeppesen, 
the president of Bay Health Systems, and all of the men and women of 
Bay Medical Center, and wishing them the very best for every continued 
success.

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