By Pacific Island Times News Staff
Ypao Point in Tamuning would be the most feasible site to build a new Guam medical facility, Sen. Chris Barnett said, noting that the administration has not provided a convincing argument for its preferred location in Barrigada.
“We need more information and details surrounding the Eda Agaga site and the feasibility of the medical complex proposal,” Barnett said, referring to the location proposed by Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero. “ It doesn’t look like the concrete commitments we need to make a good decision on Adelup’s plans are in place.”
The legislature's health committee on Monday will hold another hearing at 2 p.m. on Monday on Barnett’s Bill 185-37, which endorses the Tamuning site for a new hospital.
Barnett said previous public hearings on hospital site proposals did not produce adequate information to support the governor’s preferred location.
“I have listened intently to countless hours of public testimony provided to Speaker Therese Terlaje’s Land and Health Committee and I have met with the governor to listen to her plans for our people’s healthcare,” Barnett said.
“Given the lack of information and facts relative to Adelup’s preferred site and the necessity and viability of a medical complex, it’s clear that breaking ground in Tamuning will be the fastest and most feasible way to meet our island’s urgent critical healthcare needs now,” Barnett said.
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The Guam Medical Association insists that the healthcare facility must stay in the Tamuning area, arguing that the village is an established medical district where most clinics are located.
“The data continues to support Tamuning. The people of Guam will save $75 million on infrastructure at Ypao point, and I think we can save even more by being realistic about what we can really afford, what we can manage and what we can maintain,” he added.
Building in Tamuning, the senator said, would provide better access to the greater population.
“I understand the concerns of my Southern neighbors, I’ve lived down South all my life,” Barnett said. “That’s why I want push for improvements and new facilities that are actually located in the South for the people in the South. I think we can do that with the savings we gain by building at Ypao. And there’s plenty of room for a Veterans wing at Ypao, too.”
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