Recently, I joined Boulder City Mayor Roger Tobler, Clark County Commissioner Mary Beth Scow, Boulder City Hospital CEO Tom Maher, and other members of the community in celebrating the completion of Phase 1 construction of Boulder City Hospital’s new unit.

This expansion was made possible through collaborations between USDA Rural Development, Building Hope Nevada, Rural Community Assistance Corporation, The City of Boulder City, and Clark County. As a result of this community effort, Boulder City Hospital was able to secure a loan from the USDA Rural Development fund for $13.8 million to support its “age in place” services. Various elements of the hospital will be strengthened, from its Emergency Department to surgery areas. I know how important this hospital is to the community in Boulder City, and I was happy to recommend this loan for approval.

All Nevadans should have access to quality health care, and I am pleased that Boulder City residents will have access to the highest quality health care services and facilities. We have made many great strides to meet this end in Nevada; after the completion of Hoover Dam in 1935, the hospital in Boulder City closed, leaving its residence with no option to receive care but to travel 33 miles to Las Vegas.

Modern men and women just last year faced problems very similar to those of Boulder City eighty years ago: while hospice care existed, it was made unattainable not by distance but by the weight of one’s wallet. Women were denied admittance eighty years ago for being women; just last year, women were denied insurance needed to receive care because being a woman was considered a preexisting condition.

We must be equally committed to providing the resources to the good people of our state as we are to granting access to use those resources. Our dedication to meet this end must not waver; we must not take steps backward–toward the way things were eighty years ago–as my friends in the House have now attempted nearly fifty times. I remain resolute in ensuring Nevada communities can access and afford the very best resources and amenities.

Contact Harry Reid at http://reid.senate.gov/