U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski met with a group of hospital and borough staff to visit Petersburg’s new Wellness, Education & Resource Center, or WERC Building, on May 29. Murkowski secured $8 million in federal funding to help construct the building.
The WERC Building is the first phase of the Petersburg Medical Center’s plan to replace the aging hospital. The current hospital facility is old, and many parts of the building are well beyond their life expectancy.
Over the course of an hour, the senator saw Petersburg’s first MRI machine, the community computer lab and private telehealth booth, the state public health office, and behind-the-scenes spaces like the hospital’s new workshop.
In an interview after the tour, Murkowski said that while she gets opportunities to see where federal dollars are going, “sometimes it seems like it’s years after the fact. Or more often it’s when there’s steel girders going up, and you try to envision it.”
She said being able to actually see the completed building was a great experience.
The tour was also a way for hospital staff and administrators to share ongoing challenges with the senator. She listened as hospital leaders shared challenges around finding more employees. They also talked about restrictive Medicaid rules that have prevented some patients from qualifying for long term care.
At the end of the tour, Petersburg Medical Center CEO Phil Hofstetter thanked Murkowski for her investment in the hospital’s project.
“We could not have this building – we could not have had the infrastructure bill, or even any parts of this – without your help and your funding,” he said. “So I want to formally thank you.”
Currently, Murkowski has requested an additional $2.7 million for the hospital’s next building, a new Long Term Care facility. Currently, the hospital’s Long Term Care wing is in the oldest part of the building from the 1950s. A hospital condition survey from January detailed multiple concerns with the wing, including issues with ventilation and plumbing.
That federal funding request is still pending.
Murkowski said it takes more than the federal delegation to make a project like this happen.
“Not everything that you’re seeking is going to be delivered by the federal government. It’s partners at all levels,” she said. “But when the community demonstrates the skin in the game and the real priority, this is where we’re able to help make the magic happen. And you made the magic happen here.”
The senator was given some hospital-branded merch as a gift, and she also brought a gift of her own: an American flag that has been flown over the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C.
Murkowski sat down for lunch with hospital staff before leaving to quickly tour Scow Bay, Petersburg’s wastewater facility, and the baler.
