nline.com nline.com nline.com te at nline.com te at nline.com nline.com nline.com nline.com 12 Broadcaster Press January 31, 2017 www.broadcasteronline.com Horizon Health Care, Inc. And Washington Looking allpoints Health Services To Merge To The States By Gov. Dennis Daugaard: On Friday, Jan. 20, I was in Washington, D.C., among the many who attended the inaugural ceremonies for our 45th President. As governor, I was provided a seat on the platform, among other governors, former presidents, Supreme Court justices, senators and members of Congress. For someone like me, who grew up on a small farm, and attended a one-room school, being among those seated behind President Trump was both surreal and humbling. In recent years, the regulations and unfunded mandates imposed by the federal government have been a concern. Under the EPA alone, the last eight years have seen 4,000 new rules, requiring an estimated 33 million hours of paperwork and a price tag of $334 billion in compliance costs. Under the Affordable Care Act, another 3,852 new federal regulations were adopted, with an annual price tag www.broadcasteronline.com of more than $116 billion. Some of these regulations are overly burdensome to the states, and nonsensical. For instance, Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act, requires state Medicaid and health program agencies to post notices in the state’s top 15 languages. Even though South Dakota has only about 200 residents who speak French, we are still required to print all significant publications in French. With President Trump’s inauguration, I am hopeful many of these unreasonable regulations will be repealed. I look forward to an administration that respects limited government, is committed to reining in the federal bureaucracy and understands the role of the states in a federal system. Both the Trump Administration and leaders in Congress have been reaching out to governors, asking for ways to eliminate red tape and return flexibility to the states. While I was in Washington, D.C., for the inaugural, I was invited to speak with members of the Senate Finance Committee about South Dakota’s recommendations concerning Medicaid reform. I cautioned the senators against a “one-size-fits-all” approach to funding state Medicaid programs, and urged them to pass reforms that are equitable to rural states and also to states that have not expanded Medicaid. State governments should have the option of establishing work requirements or requiring wellness activities or performance benchmarks for Medicaid enrollees. These approaches could help keep costs down and improve health outcomes for individuals. www.broadcasteronline.com I also identified the Medicaid/Indian Health Services reimbursement issue as South Dakota’s number one priority and urged the senators to consider this issue when repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act. The federal government needs to live up to its obligation to provide health care for Native Americans. I am encouraged that the Trump Administration and federal lawmakers are asking for state input. My meeting with Senate Finance Committee members marked the first time since my election in 2010 that governors have been asked by members of Congress to come to Washington to give our state’s perspective on federal reforms. I am hopeful they will take South Dakota’s priorities under serious consideration and, in the coming years, continue to look to the states. www.broadcasteronline.com www.broadcasteronline.com Visit our Web site at www.broadcasteronline.com Visit our Web site at www.broadcasteronline.com www.broadcasteronline.com www.broadcasteronline.com te at nline.com Visit our Web site at www.broadcasteronline.com te at nline.com HOWARD – Horizon Health Care, Inc. (Horizon) and allPOINTS Health Services (allPOINTS) board members and leadership are pleased to announce the intended merger of their respective community health centers to form a network of 31 medical, dental, and school-based clinics throughout the entire state of South Dakota. “After months of discussion leading up to this decision, we are pleased with this opportunity to join forces with allPOINTS and add five well-established medical and dental clinics to our network,” said John Mengenhausen, CEO of Horizon Health Care, Inc. “Both organizations have a rich history in striving to improve the quality of life for those we serve through delivery of affordable health care in many of our state’s most rural areas. Horizon will continue to provide allPOINTS Health Services’ patients with access to the same quality health care they currently receive.” allPOINTS Health Services is a Community Health Center with five medical and dental clinic locations in the communities of Alcestor, Elk Point, and Yankton, SD. Horizon and allPOINTS have been fortunate to have a long-standing relationship throughout the years, especially over the past fifteen years. Since 2003, Horizon has provided direct support to allPOINTS in the area of information technology, and most recently, the organizations have shared a partnership in the Prairie Health IT Network that provides shared IT staffing and health information technology training to staff. Once the merger is complete, the allPOINTS clinics will operate as a part of Horizon Health Care, Inc. The current allPOINTS employees and providers will continue to serve patients at each clinic site. AllPOINTS Board Chair, Jerry Miller, has served on the board for the past five years and believes the merger will strengthen the services current patients are accustomed to. “We have given this decision a lot of consideration and wanted to move in the direction that was best for the nearly 3,000 patients we serve each year,” said Miller. “As a board, we would like to express our sincere appreciation to our patients and staff for their support over the past years. We have had great success in recent partnerships with Horizon and I feel confident that they will continue to strive for excellence.” As the organizations work to integrate their locations and services, Mengenhausen and Sally Rosin, Horizon Board Chair, hope to have the merger completed by June 2017. “Throughout this upcoming integration period, Horizon is dedicated to merging the two organizations with minimal disruptions to patient care. As a board, we strongly believe that leveraging the strengths in both organizations will allow Horizon to improve and align processes in the delivery of quality patient care. We have a very exciting road ahead of us,” said Rosin. For 39 years, Horizon Health Care, Inc. has been providing personalized, affordable, high-quality medical, dental and mental health care through a rural, community-based network in South Dakota. Horizon is a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) that serves the medical, dental and mental health care needs of South Dakotans in rural, medically underserved areas through 83,000 patient visits annually in 26 community health centers in: Aberdeen, Bison, Bryant, De Smet, Eagle Butte, Faith, Fort Thompson, Howard, Huron, Isabel, La Plant, Lake Preston, Martin, McIntosh, Mission, Plankinton, Wessington Springs, White River and Woonsocket. For more information please visit www. horizonhealthcare.org. Governor Seeking Interns For The Summer Research Study Verifies Growing Economic Impact Of Higher Education PIERRE, S.D. – Gov. Dennis Daugaard is currently seeking applications for a summer 2017 Governor’s Office Internship in Pierre. The position will be paid and run from early May through August 2017. Governor’s Office interns have the opportunity to work at the highest level of state government, learning about and preparing legislation to be introduced in the next legislative session. Interns’ duties depend on interests and strengths. Typical duties will include aiding the Governor’s communications director, conducting policy research, preparing policy briefings, and staffing the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and First Lady. The internships are open to all undergraduate or graduate-level students. Preference will be given to South Dakota residents attending South Dakota colleges or universities. Students who are interested in receiving credit should also apply. The Governor’s staff is open to working with individual universities and professors to secure credit for the internship program. Interested students should submit a resume, cover letter and two letters of recommendation by Feb. 28, via email, to Grace.Beck@state.sd.us. For more information on duties or logistics contact Grace at Grace.Beck@state.sd.us or 605-773-3661. PIERRE, S.D. – A research study that measures the impact of South Dakota’s six public universities on the state economy will be released Tuesday, Jan. 31, at a briefing for state lawmakers in Pierre. “This study updates initial baseline research conducted in 2010,” said Randy Schaefer, president of the South Dakota Board of Regents. “We were amazed to learn that the statewide impact of the public higher education system on South Dakota’s economic growth and well-being has grown by 35 percent in six years.” Both the newest study and the one from 2010 were conducted by lead researcher Michael Allgrunn, associate professor of economics at the University of South Dakota’s Beacom School of Business. The research work was sponsored by the South Dakota Board of Regents and the South Dakota Chamber of Commerce & Industry. Among other findings, Allgrunn’s research found that 67,850 people living in South Dakota would not be here without the six public universities. This includes students; faculty and staff employed by the universities and their families; as well as other workers and their families not affiliated directly with the universities, but who make a living here due to the economic activity that the universities generate. Additional data will be released Tuesday when the full research study becomes public. “The economic impact of our public universities is quite significant; we think many people will be surprised at just how significant,” Schaefer said. Tuesday’s briefing includes remarks from Dr. Allgrunn; Mike Rush, executive director of the South Dakota Board of Regents; and David Owen, president of South Dakota Chamber of Commerce & Industry. The public and news media are invited and encouraged to attend. Visit our Web site at www.broadcasteronline.com Buying or Listing Call... 2034 Augusta Sunday, Febuary 4th 1–3pm 3 Bedroom, 2 ½ Baths 2473 sq. ft. home on the 18th hole of the Bluffs Golf Course $315,000 324 E. Lewis 1823 E. 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