[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 73 (Thursday, May 15, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6503-S6504]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 UM/VA GENERAL CLINICAL RESEARCH CENTER

 Mr. GRAHAM of Florida. Mr. President, the Veterans Health 
Administration has long-standing relationships with medical schools 
around the country, a partnership that continually proves beneficial 
for all who are involved. I am proud to highlight that the Miami VA 
Medical Center and the University of Miami have taken this 
collaboration to the next level, with the May 2, 2003, opening of a 
National Institutes of Health-funded UM/VA General Clinical Research 
Center at the Miami VAMC.
  At the September 12, 2002, meeting of the President's Task Force to 
Improve Health Care Delivery for our Nation's Veterans, Dr. John G. 
Clarkson, Senior Vice President for Medical Affairs and Dean of the 
University of Miami, testified about his experience in partnering

[[Page S6504]]

with VA. He expressed how valuable the academic affiliation has been in 
improving care for veterans while contributing greatly to the 
educational and research capabilities of the schools. The affiliation--
in his view--has also fostered cost-effective and efficient sharing of 
clinical and research resources, resulting in significant health care 
reforms.
  Dr. Clarkson also pointed out that, were it not for its 50-year old 
collaboration with the Miami VAMC, the University of Miami Medical 
School never would have gotten off the ground, nor would it have 
accomplished all it has over the years.
  The new General Clinical Research Center will be only the third such 
facility housed at a VA Medical Center, and it will allow basic 
research results to be applied to the development of potentially 
lifesaving drugs, devices, and therapies that could benefit not only 
veterans, but the entire Nation.
  I would like to congratulate and thank the hardworking staffs of both 
the Miami VA Medical Center and the University of Miami Medical School. 
Without their dedication, their 50-year collaboration would never have 
been so successful and this latest development, a brand-new Clinical 
Research Center, would not have been possible.

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