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U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns speaks on the bus outside the Orange City Area Health System. Photo by Keith Mueller, Ph.D. |
Their most recent rural agricultural tour brought them to Iowa.
While the focus of the tour was to see how their grants and loans were being used, it also included a look at the economic impact of rural health.
“Health care is more than just a part of the infrastructure,” said Keith Mueller, Ph.D., director of the Rural Policy Research Institute at UNMC.
Dr. Mueller was the only person from the state invited to tag along on the USDA agricultural tour last month.
“A rural hospital not only brings jobs to a community but also makes it a viable place to live,” he said.
For example, the group toured the Orange City Area Health System, a critical access hospital, physician clinic and rehabilitation facility rolled into one.
Soon after the $39 million facility, built without USDA funds, opened other businesses moved in across the street.
“It was an eye-opening trip for the folks from the USDA,” Dr. Mueller said.
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Keith Mueller, Ph.D., far left, participated in last month’s USDA tour of Iowa. Photo courtesy of Dr. Mueller. |
“Whatever we can do to help the USDA invest their dollars effectively will ultimately impact rural communities in Nebraska,” he said.