Megan Miller Cumberland Times-News
OAKLAND — A ribbon-cutting celebration marked the official opening of Garrett County’s Mountain Laurel Medical Center Friday afternoon.
Federal, state and local officials gathered for the ceremony at the new facility on Memorial Drive. The medical center actually opened to patients in November.
The center provides primary, preventative and pediatric care to county residents, including low-income residents and those without medical insurance.
“All persons living in Garrett County will now receive the same quality of care, regardless of socioeconomic status, or whether they’re insured or uninsured,” said Beth Little-Terry, Mountain Laurel’s CEO. “This is truly the community’s medical center.”
Little-Terry said the new facility has 12 exam rooms and is fitted with state-of-the-art diagnostic and other computer equipment.
“This is another example of how things can get done when all levels of government work together,” said state Sen. George Edwards, who spoke during the ceremony.
Delegate Wendell Beitzel said he hopes the new facility will help officials develop a solution to the ongoing struggle to secure OB/GYN services in the county.
“In the long term, we’re hoping we can work with the new facility and family doctors to provide needed medical attention to mothers and children in this county,” he said.
Other speakers included Maurice Denis, associate vice president of the National Association of Community Health Centers.
According to Denis, the Mountain Laurel center is one of 7,500 community health centers in the nation. Together, they serve approximately 20 million people, and provide services that are, on average, 30 percent lower in cost than private practice physicians and emergency services.
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