Jones receives NRHA’s Rural Health Champion Award
Published 1:37 pm Tuesday, February 5, 2019
On Tuesday, Sen. Doug Jones, D-AL, received the 2019 Rural Health Champion Award from the National Rural Health Association (NRHA) during the group’s 30th annual Rural Health Policy Institute event.
The event brings together more than 400 rural health advocates and professionals, many from Alabama, to discuss rural health priorities.
The group also honored Jones’ Senior Health Policy Advisor, Deputy Legislative Director Katie Campbell, for “outstanding work” in advancing rural health policy, according to a press release.
“When I came to the Senate, I knew that increasing access to quality, affordable health care would be my top priority,” said Jones, a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee. “People living in rural areas often face tremendous difficulties finding health care providers in their own communities. The challenge of consistent, quality health care for rural America is exponentially more difficult than in other areas of the country. These persistent gaps in access to care unsurprisingly lead to very poor health outcomes. I’m proud of what we’ve been able to accomplish on this issue in a bipartisan way over the past year, but there are many more steps we can take to shore up our rural health system, like finally expanding Medicaid in Alabama.”
Among the efforts Jones has led in addressing healthcare for rural communities was the Rural Health Liaison Act, which “aims to improve coordination of federal resources and expand healthcare access for rural Americans.”
The bill was signed into law as part of the 2018 Farm Bill.
Jones announced that his guest for Tuesday night’s “State of the Union” address would be Farrell Turner, President of the Alabama Rural Health Association.
“It is an honor to welcome Farrell Turner to be my guest at the State of the Union,” Jones said. “Through his leadership role at the Alabama Rural Health Association, he represents more than 600 rural hospitals, clinics, community health centers, and providers in Alabama who are dedicated to improving health outcomes in our rural communities. They have faced serious challenges in recent years, but their commitment to their mission has never wavered. Since this issue has been at the top of my priority list, it was important to me to invite Farrell to be my guest tonight and to attend on behalf of all of the dedicated rural health professionals and advocates in Alabama.”