Improving Healthcare Access and Quality

Project: Burlington Atomic Energy Commission Plant (BAECP) and Ames Laboratory Former Workers Medical Surveillance Programs (UI-FWP)
Recipient: University of Iowa
                105 Jessup Hall
                Iowa City, IA 52242
Amount Requested: $1,000,000
This funding will ensure those that helped in the defense of our country receive the care they deserve. In 1993, Congress passed a law requiring the DOE to evaluate the long-range health conditions of current and former employees who may be at risk for health problems as a result of their employment at DOE sites. The DOE later contracted with The University of Iowa to coordinate a medical surveillance program for a DOE site in Iowa: the Burlington Atomic Energy Commission Plant (BAECP) at the Iowa Army Ammunition Plant (IAAAP) in Middletown, Iowa. The University of Iowa was also tasked with implementing needs assessment activities and former worker medical screenings for the Ames Laboratory at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa.

Project: Buruli Ulcer Demonstration Project
Recipient: McCord Research Foundation
                59 2nd Street
                Coralville, IA 52241
Amount Requested: $555,000
This request would fund research into the cause and transmission of Buruli ulcer, an infectious disease that causes lesions to form in the skin. The McCord Research Foundation in Coralville, Iowa is leading the nation in finding ways to prevent this debilitating disease. These funds would support high-quality jobs for scientific researchers, epidemiologists, and other health professionals.

Project: Center for the Design and Analysis of Cardiovascular Implants and Devices
Recipient: University of Iowa
                101 Jessup Hall
                Iowa City, IA 52242
Amount Requested: $1,487,600
This request would provide funds for research to develop the next generation of cardiovascular implants (e.g., valves, stents, grafts). Improved cardiovascular implants would reduce the need for post-operative treatments that can be both expensive and frustrating to patients. This request would create or maintain jobs, including faculty positions, at the University of Iowa.

Project: Epidemiologic Health Survey of DOD Contract Workers at the Iowa Army Ammunition Plant
Recipient: The University of Iowa
                105 Jessup Hall
                University of Iowa
                Iowa City, IA 52242
Amount Requested: $650,000
Between 500,000 and 800,000 workers in the United States are estimated to be exposed to beryllium dust through work in the munitions industry. Typically 3 to 5% of exposed workers develop Beryllium Sensitivity and half of these may progress to Chronic Beryllium Disease. Munitions workers, such as those at the Iowa Army Ammunition Plant (IAAAP), provide an irreplaceable service to our nation and research into the effects of Beryllium exposure is critical to assuring their health and safety.  This study is the largest cohort epidemiologic study of cancer and mortality in the munitions industry and involves more than 35,000 federal munitions contract workers at the IAAAP.  Throughout the Cold War, thousands of Iowans worked at the IAAAP, often on secret projects.  Many of these workers sacrificed their health for the security of our nation, working with beryllium, asbestos, uranium, and radiation without knowing the impact these materials would later have on their health.    They are truly the unsung heroes of the Cold War. This funding will be used to measure the prevalence of beryllium lymphocyte sensitization in a selected sample of workers whose occupations may have put them at the greatest risk for beryllium exposure.  Those who suffer from beryllium lymphocyte sensitization will be clinically evaluated for adverse health consequences.  Furthermore, munitions workers are often exposed to explosives, solvents, metals, depleted uranium, radiation sources, and other toxins.  Thus, the study will also assess mortality and cancer incidence in relation to such potential exposures.  The results from this study will help to define measures to improve occupational work practices in handling hazardous substances in the munitions industry.  Furthermore, it will direct IAAAP workers to proper medical evaluation and treatment.  


Project: Food Cooperative Program for High Risk Populations
Recipient: Linn County Public Health
                501 13th St. NW
                Cedar Rapids, IA 52405
Amount Requested: $330,000
This request would provide access to healthy foods by purchasing fresh produce from local farmers in-season and from wholesale markets out-of-season, and selling them at a reduced price to cooperative members, who will consist of individuals in high-risk target populations. The long term outcomes will be a reduction in high obesity rates and improved nutrition for at-risk populations.


Project: Inclusion of Buruli Ulcer in USAID’s Programs to Address Neglected Tropical Diseases
Recipient: McCord Research Foundation
                59 Second Street
                Coralville, Iowa 52241
Amount Requested: No Amount Requested
Buruli ulcer is an infectious disease that causes lesions to form in the skin. The McCord Research Foundation in Coralville, Iowa is leading the nation in finding ways to prevent this debilitating disease. This request would allow the McCord Research Foundation to put Iowa’s scientific researchers, epidemiologists, and other health professionals to work on combating this disease by allowing them to partner with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to include Buruli Ulcer research, prevention, and treatment in its work on Neglected Tropical Diseases.

Project: Iowa City Animal Care and Adoption Center
Recipient: Friends of the Animal Center Foundation
                PO Box 1345
                Iowa City, IA 52244
Amount Requested: $850,000
This request would fund an expansion of the Iowa City Animal Care and Adoption Center. The Center has had to respond to an unusually high volume of animal emergencies due to the recent flood, when they needed to provide emergency housing for an additional 350 animals. This request will create additional veterinarian and veterinary technician jobs at the center.

Project: Iowa College of Public Health Academic Building
Recipient: University of Iowa
                101 Jessup Hall
                Iowa City, IA 52242
Amount Requested: $8,000,000
This request would fund the completion of the University of Iowa College of Public Health building, including an addition for the Public Health Research Institute. Investing in public health creates jobs while improving the health outcomes of the population. This facility will help make the University of Iowa a leader in addressing the nation’s growing need to understand, explain and predict complex public health phenomena through research, to produce highly trained front line professionals in this field, and to provide professional and educational services in the health fields to the public.  

Project: Lee County Conservation/Lee County Health Department Service Center
Recipient: Lee County
                P.O. Box 218
                2652 Highway 61
                Montrose, IA 52639
Amount Requested: $1,500,000
This request would support construction of a joint building facility for the Lee County Conservation Board and the Lee County Health Department, which would grant the public better access to conservation, environmental, and public health services. This request would create construction jobs and ensure the retention of jobs in the Health Department and Conservation Board.

Project: Multi-Generational Community Life Center
Recipient: City of Cedar Rapids
                3851 River Ridge Drive NE
                Cedar Rapids, IA 52402
Amount Requested: $1,500,000
This request would fund construction of a wellness and recreational facility that would provide a variety of services for community members of every age, from early childhood care to senior meal service. The Center will serve as a needed community hub for a city that was devastated by the 2008 floods. According to the City of Cedar Rapids, construction of the Multi-Generational Community Life Center facility is expected to create 500 short-term jobs and 100 full-time equivalent sustained jobs.  

Project: Washington County Public Health Building
Recipient: Washington County
                210 W Main Street
                Washington, IA 52353
Amount Requested: $1,000,000
This request would provide a single location for Washington County Department of Public Health, which currently rents space in two separate locations. The current space is inadequate in size, privacy, accessibility, and parking.  This project would provide the Department of Public Health with a one-story, handicap-accessible building that would house all of their services, including all clinics and offices, in one location while increasing efficiency and ensuring that all records are stored securely. This request will maintain jobs in the Washington County Department of Public Health, which provides necessary health-related services to the community.

Project: Wellness, Longevity, and Integrative Medicine Center
Recipient: University of Iowa
                101 Jessup Hall
                Iowa City, IA 52242
Amount Requested: $1,897,500
This request would provide funds for prevention programs and integration between the wellness and integrative medicine programs and the conventional medical care received at the University of Iowa. The most common and costly diseases affecting Americans are preventable with well-defined wellness interventions, and University of Iowa Health Care would create a model prevention and integrated care for improving health and reducing health care costs. The requested funds would create or retain jobs for physicians and wellness specialists.