It’s a real pleasure to be here this morning with you all as we break ground on this new addition. This project will certainly enhance the quality care that our service men and women already receive at Naval Hospital Jacksonville.
Since 2003, I have worked with the Navy and my colleagues on the House Appropriations Committee in Washington to get the necessary funds and the right contractor for this addition, and I am so pleased that this day has finally come.
As you know this project has encountered several setbacks and unforeseen challenges, and those make this day that much more satisfying.
I also want to join Captain Bono in congratulating all of you and honoring the years of hard work that have helped to make this morning’s ceremony a reality, and I look forward to being a part of the ribbon cutting in the not so distant future.
Over the last few years I’ve learned a great deal about Naval Hospital Jacksonville, its mission and its people.
It is much larger than what you see before you. This regional military treatment facility includes the main hospital campus, a Substance and Abuse Rehabilitation Program and 7 Naval Branch Health Clinics from Key West, Florida to Atlanta, Ga. All of these offer high-quality healthcare to more than 214,000 eligible beneficiaries, some 64,000 in the Jacksonville area alone.
In 2007 alone, the hospital had 4,729 admissions, 640,000 outpatient visits, performed 4,058 surgical procedures, saw 60,551 patients in the Emergency Department and filled 1,334,495 prescriptions in the pharmacy.
The Hospital is also critical in supporting our deployed forces on the battlefield. Last year 196 Naval Hospital Jacksonville personnel deployed to support missions in Iraq and Afghanistan, and 125 are deployed today. Because of these efforts, the success of military medicine in this war has been astounding. The survival rate for the wounded who reach medical care has gone from 15 percent in prior wars to 97 percent today.
The other part of the hospital’s critical mission is supporting active duty, military family members and retirees on the home front.
With our service members facing long deployments these days it is vital that our service members know their family can get care in a first rate facility. Our fighting men and women can better focus on the mission at hand knowing that their spouse and children are receiving the best medical care possible.
And of course, honoring our commitment to providing quality care for our Veteran population is our highest calling. A large portion of those 64,000 eligible beneficiaries that the hospital serves in the Jacksonville area are retired veterans.
But the hospital also has been a big financial win for our community as well.
This $35.8 million project has been a huge financial boon for NE Florida at a time when the building sector needs a boost. The taxpayer dollars spent here along with the billions more invested in local MILCON projects not only mean better facilities for the military, but jobs and cash in the pockets for our citizens. That impact helps fuel the economic engine of this community.
So thank you, for all your hard work and commitment to seeing this project become reality, and we look forward to seeing the finished project.
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