FHA-INSURED COQUILLE HOSPITAL CONSTRUCTION PROJECT TO CELEBRATE GRAND OPENING THIS SATURDAY, APRIL 21ST
This is first of two FHA-insured hospital construction projects in Oregon set to open this year

PORTLAND - Residents of Oregon's Coquille Valley will celebrate the grand opening of a new 3-story, 51,000 square-foot hospital facility in Coquille on Saturday afternoon, April 21st. Construction was financed by the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust using Build America Bonds under the Recovery Act with a $22 million mortgage insured by the Government National Mortgage Association ("Ginnie Mae") and the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), a part of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

The Coquille Valley Hospital project is one of two hospital construction projects in Oregon insured by FHA expected to be completed this year. The other project – the Santiam Memorial Hospital – is located in Stayton and is expected open later this summer.

"HUD is pleased to provide assistance to communities urban and rural to help insure that their residents have full access to outstanding medical care while also creating jobs and strengthening the community," said HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan. "This project is a 20-year-old dream in the Coquille Valley and we congratulate the hospital staff and their partners for their hard work in making it come true."

"Our new hospital will enable our dedicated staff and physicians to continue to provide our communities with exceptional healthcare now and well into the future," said Coquille Valley Hospital CEO Dennis Zielinski.

"A modern, state-of-the-art hospital is critical to both the physical and economic well-being of communities," said HUD Northwest Regional Administrator Mary McBride. "Working with partners like the Coquille Valley Hospital and the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust, our Section 242 mortgages are a proven tool in delivering accessible and available health care in communities both large and small."

The mortgage was insured under FHA's Section 242 Hospital Mortgage Insurance Program that insures mortgages made by private lending institutions to finance construction or renovation of acute care hospitals including major equipment needed to operate the facility. Eligible applicants can be public, proprietary, or nonprofit hospitals certified by the responsible State agency. By insuring the mortgage loan, FHA enables a hospital to obtain lower cost financing that will save an estimated $1.5 million in interest expense over the life of the loan. Since 1968, FHA has insured almost 400 mortgages to hospitals throughout the nation.

Coquille Valley Hospital's existing facility was constructed in 1969 and designed primarily for inpatient care. Though there have been various building additions and improvements in subsequent years, it was no longer suitable for the hospital's growing outpatient volume. The new facility will enable Coquille Valley Hospital to create separate emergency, outpatient care, inpatient entryways and to provide covered patient parking for patients. All programs and services will be retained and/or expanded programmatically.

The hospital is a Critical Access hospital with a Level IV Trauma Certification and serves an area of some 14,000 residents. Last year, it had some 500 emergency room visits, 650 inpatient admissions and 40 births. Its services include general surgery, orthopedic and joint replacement surgery. podiatric surgery, ophthalmologic and lens replacement, and ENT and pain management procedures as well as obstetrics/labor-delivery and newborn nursery care. Ancillary services include a clinical laboratory, medical imaging, a pharmacy, cardiopulmonary services (respiratory therapy), rehabilitative medicine, and support services, including Swing-bed and Home Health care.

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