By: Hochberg H.C.R. No. 137
73R10054 BNL-D
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
1-1 WHEREAS, The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center
1-2 was created in 1941 by the 47th Texas Legislature to serve all
1-3 Texans and reduce the toll that cancer takes on the state, and
1-4 since that time the center has grown to become the nation's
1-5 foremost comprehensive cancer center and one of the 10 best
1-6 hospitals in the United States; and
1-7 WHEREAS, More than 290,000 patients, the majority of them
1-8 Texans, have turned to M. D. Anderson Cancer Center for exemplary
1-9 patient care and rehabilitation services over the past
1-10 half-century, and people all over the world have benefited from new
1-11 therapies pioneered there; and
1-12 WHEREAS, Texans are seen at this fine institution regardless
1-13 of their economic circumstances, and in 1992 the center provided in
1-14 excess of $140 million in charity care to the people of this state;
1-15 yet even with this strong commitment to community service, the
1-16 hospital earns more than $5 for every dollar of state support it
1-17 receives, thereby providing the Texas taxpayer with a remarkable
1-18 bargain; and
1-19 WHEREAS, For many years, M. D. Anderson Cancer Center has
1-20 taken the lead in initiating programs that form partnerships with
1-21 local physicians to assure that more patients can be treated closer
1-22 to where they live; the center supports 16 community owned and
1-23 operated radiation treatment centers throughout Texas, and the
1-24 recently implemented Texas Outreach initiative will further efforts
2-1 to bring state-of-the-art treatment nearer to patients' homes; and
2-2 WHEREAS, Launched in 1992, the Texas Outreach initiative
2-3 comprises 11 projects that use physician education and the
2-4 electronic transfer of information to extend the institution's
2-5 expertise in cancer screening, treatment, and prevention services
2-6 to doctors across the state; during its first year alone, three of
2-7 the projects in the initiative allowed more than 8,000 individuals
2-8 to be tested in their hometowns, while the results were transmitted
2-9 to M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston for interpretation and
2-10 analysis; and
2-11 WHEREAS, This innovative technique mitigates the absence of
2-12 qualified cancer specialists in certain areas of the state and
2-13 eliminates costly travel expenses for patients who no longer have
2-14 to journey hundreds of miles to be tested; because Texas also
2-15 suffers from a critical shortage of radiation therapy
2-16 technologists, the program also will set up a training program for
2-17 these sorely needed allied health professionals; and
2-18 WHEREAS, By bringing together M. D. Anderson Cancer Center's
2-19 professional staff with practicing physicians across the state,
2-20 Texas Outreach is helping to make every doctor's office in Texas a
2-21 cancer screening, detection, and treatment center, allowing
2-22 M. D. Anderson Cancer Center to go far beyond its physical
2-23 facilities to fulfill its mandate of outstanding service to all
2-24 Texans; now, therefore, be it
2-25 RESOLVED, That the 73rd Legislature of the State of Texas
2-26 hereby express its appreciation to The University of Texas
2-27 M. D. Anderson Cancer Center for monumental contributions that have
3-1 improved the outlook for all people affected by cancer and further
3-2 commend M. D. Anderson Cancer Center for its leadership and
3-3 dedication to hastening the time when cancer can be eliminated as a
3-4 major health threat for Texans; and, be it further
3-5 RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
3-6 prepared for The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center
3-7 as an expression of gratitude and high regard by the Legislature of
3-8 the State of Texas.