Senators team up with President Obama to announce $1.3 million for Kalispell

White House says Jobs Bill money will create 40 health care jobs

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – Dozens of new jobs will boost the Flathead Valley, thanks to $1.3 million in funding announced today by President Barack Obama and Senators Max Baucus and Jon Tester.

President Obama says the money, which will go to the Flathead City County Health Department in Kalispell, will create 40 new jobs.  The funding is part of the Jobs Bill, formally known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. 

The $1.3 million announced today is in addition to the nearly $626 million Montana is already receiving from the Jobs Bill.

“We have acted quickly to put Recovery Act dollars to good use in communities across America,” President Obama said in a statement. “The construction and expansion of health centers will help create thousands of new jobs and provide critical assistance to Americans who have lost their job and their health care. Health centers, primary care, and prevention are at the heart of my plan for an affordable, accessible health care system.”

Both Baucus and Tester played key roles in writing and passing the Jobs Bill last month.

“This is a much-needed shot in the arm for the economy and for health care in the Flathead Valley,” said Baucus, chairman of the powerful Senate Finance Committee.  “These dollars are right in line with two of my biggest priorities—creating good-paying jobs in Montana and improving access to quality, affordable health care.”

“The Jobs Bill is already going to work in Montana rebuilding our economy from the ground up by putting folks back to work—especially in a part of the state hit hard by an economy we inherited after eight years of failed policies,” said Tester, a member of the influential Senate Appropriations Committee who met recently with Flathead area residents in Kalispell.  “I was proud to vote for the Jobs Bill, and I appreciated the opportunity to look folks in the eye and tell them why.  This is one reason why.”

The $1.3 million grant will come from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Health Resources and Services Administration.