Tim Walz tours medical center

Staff

Published Thursday, May 31, 2007

By Sarah Light, staff writer

First District Congressman Tim Walz met with Albert Lea Medical Center administrators Wednesday, discussing the construction plans under way for the medical center, along with other rural health care issues.

Walz said the developments to the facility are a testament that the city of Albert Lea is growing, and he commended the city for being proactive.

“I’m very intrigued by some of the things you’re doing,” he said. “It’s very exciting. You can feel the energy when you’re doing things like this.”

His visit came during a week of traveling around the district to find out how national legislation about transportation, health care and the farm bill affect this area.

“The work has to be done in Washington, but we always look forward to being back,” he said.

It is when he’s at home that he can find out from the real “experts” about the things going on in this area, he said. This is necessary because sometimes the views in Washington get skewed, he noted.

During his medical center visit, he first met with ALMC Hospital Administrator Steve Underdahl,

Clinic Administrator Ginny Larson, Chief Financial Officer Dave Pilot, and Director of Community Relations Patti Hareid.

The group talked about the medical center’s construction along with issues such as the new ALMCare program that is in the works, which would help uninsured patients seeking health care.

Under the program, uninsured patients would carry a card to identify them as in need of financial assistance. They would present it at the same time an insured person would present an insurance card, and then they would pay an amount for their coverage based on their income. The hospital would pay for the rest.

Walz said he was particularly excited about this concept. It would help give these individuals the dignity of paying bills, while also helping the medical center cut down on collections, he said.

After discussions, Underdahl and Larson gave Walz a tour of some of the areas of the medical center that are under construction.

As he walked with the administrators through the building, he asked about the total cost of construction and what the life expectancy for the upgrades would be.

Underdahl and Larson explained to Walz that life expectancies are often dependent on the equipment lifespans, which can vary. But they are hopeful the facility upgrades should take the medical center into the next 15 years, Underdahl said.

Walz said he would like to come back once the construction is complete to view the finished facility.

As he was leaving to go to his next stop, he said he wanted make sure that people know that he as a congressman is working for them. If people ever have any concerns they can contact his office.

A Walz mobile office stop will be in Albert Lea on June 21 from 1 to 5 p.m. with a few of his staff members on hand to hear the concerns of the people of this area. More information is to come on where the stop will be.

In the mean time, people can e-mail the congressman through his Web site at

or call one of his staff members in Rochester at (507) 206-0643, in Mankato at (507) 388-2149 or in Washington, D.C., at (202) 225-2472.

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