Georgia General Assembly

WHEREAS, Hospital Corporation of America (HCA) is the nation's leading provider of healthcare services, composed of locally managed facilities that include approximately 190 hospitals and 90 outpatient surgery centers in 23 states, England, and Switzerland, including 21 in Georgia; and

WHEREAS, HCA leadership and staff should be commended for their heroic deeds as demonstrated by the dozens of HCA staff who were on the ground in New Orleans coordinating evacuation and relief efforts, many of whom have been in place since Katrina hit as of September 2, 2005; and

WHEREAS, many staff flew in private aircraft to other HCA hospital locations to support nursing and supply efforts in the area, with another 170 nurses on stand-by; and

WHEREAS, HCA hired 20 helicopters to evacuate patients and staff from Tulane University Hospital and Clinic, which included close to 200 patients and over 1,200 employees and staff; and

WHEREAS, HCA leadership, coordinating with Governor Blanco's office, offered the 20 helicopters at its expense to assist with the evacuation of nearby Charity hospital's two facilities and University Medical Center, which are not affiliated with HCA; and

WHEREAS, even before the total evacuation of HCA facilities, as many as 50 Charity Hospital patients, some severely ill and on ventilators, were evacuated by HCA; and

WHEREAS, with each arrival, the helicopters dropped 750 pounds of food, water, and medical supplies, filling the choppers with people for their return runs to the New Orleans airport, where buses wait ready to transport healthy individuals to shelter locations in Lafayette; and

WHEREAS, as of September 2, 2005, the staff and families of HCA are being evacuated to nearby HCA shelters, and HCA has pledged to maintain all 38,000 employees in the area on full salary indefinitely; and

WHEREAS, HCA donated $2 million in cash donations – half to the American Red Cross and half to the HCA's Hope Fund to assist HCA personnel who have lost homes and belongings in the disaster; and

WHEREAS, HCA has three other hospitals in the region affected by the storm, and several others that remain intact are working overtime to care for the needs of the evacuated patients and citizens and are coordinating additional evacuations as needed to nearby states, including Georgia.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES that we recognize and commend the heroic efforts of this private company, Hospital Corporation of America; its dedication to the care of its patients and their families; its dedication to staff with assistance in employment and relocation; the joint private-public partnership "to do everything they can do to help one another"; and all the staff, nurses, physicians, clerical employees, and maintenance employees who were the true heroes in the face of the storm, in the face of security issues, and in the stress of evacuating very sick patients as safely as possible, all the while having grave concerns about their own families and homes.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Clerk of the House of Representatives is authorized and directed to transmit an appropriate copy of this resolution to Hospital Corporation of America.