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Guam National Guard celebrates 27th anniversary, welcomes home 141 Soldiers

December 10, 2008


Governor Camacho proclaimed "National Guard Week," commemorating the 372nd birthday of the National Guard and the 27th anniversary of the Guam National Guard and honoring all the heroes who fight bravely to build an island and a nation strengthened by the freedoms upon which this country was founded.  The Guam National Guard was founded on July 21, 1981.  "It is a testament to our freedom and a gesture of gratitude for the hard work, dedication and sacrifices our Guam National Guard Soldiers and Airmen continually provide," the proclamation reads.

Legislature cannot pledge Compact Impact funding or abrogate Interior Department authority
 
December 5, 2008
 
Governor Felix P. Camacho today vetoed Bill No. 377 (EC), which sought to pledge Compact Impact funding for the construction costs of a new landfill.  The measure purportedly would have pledged funding normally allocated for education, health and safety needs.
 
"The authorization to use Compact Impact funds is misplaced and conflicts with federal law," Governor Camacho wrote in his veto message to Speaker Judith Won Pat.  "The Department of Interior has already approved the use of Compact Impact funds and therefore Bill No. 377 cannot abrogate their authority."
 
Compact Impact funding is awarded to Guam by the U.S. Congress and disbursed at the discretion of the Governor.  The Governor of Guam prioritizes funding needs and requests disbursement of funds based on those needs.  When approved, the government of Guam incurs costs approved by the Governor for use authorized by the Interior Department and the funding is reimbursed by the federal government to the Treasury of Guam.  The Legislature does not appropriate this funding.

Seven proposed bills signed into law

December 3, 2008

Acting Governor Michael W. Cruz, M.D. yesterday signed seven bills into law including Public Law 29-121 which allows insurance refunds or rebates. As a result of this new Public Law, both private and public employees who participate in qualified wellness programs are eligible for financial incentives consistent with the Federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996.

"I applaud the legislature for recognizing our need to make healthy living and wellness a priority amid these economically difficult times," said Acting Governor Michael W. Cruz, M.D. "This piece of legislation reinforces the mission of my Healthy Guam Initiative by making preventative care less expensive for our families."

Acting Governor Cruz also signed:

Bill would jeopardize progress with the Guam Buildup

December 03, 2008

Acting Governor Michael W. Cruz, M.D. yesterday vetoed Bill 378, which would unseat the Civilian Military Taskforce and jeopardize Guam's ability to prepare for the pending Guam Buildup. 

"As written, this legislation would unseat all CMTF sub-committee Chairs and potentially impede or undo nearly three years of progress," said Acting Governor Cruz. "In that time the CMTF has produced Guam's comprehensive needs assessment, submitted a port improvement plan, the 2030 transportation plan and drafted our FY2010 submission to the Office of Management and Budget."

Bill 378's attempt to address sensitive issues such as the island's political status, the return of ancestral lands, Chamorro self-determination and war reparations has been the basis of Guam's federal policy agenda.

"These issues are of the utmost importance to myself, Governor Camacho and our administration, but their complexity deserves our full attention, and that is why our statutes created the Committee on Decolonization, the former Land Re-use Authority, and the congressionally empowered Sub-committee on war reparations," said Acting Governor Cruz. "Though I strongly empathize with all of these concerns, the CMTF must not abdicate its responsibility to plan for tomorrow, while we actively work to settle the sensitive issues of our past. Our community remains divided on the approaches we must take to resolve these longstanding and complex issues." 

November 28, 2008

Acting Governor Michael W. Cruz, M.D. announces Guam's recent re-designations as a Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA), as well as, a Medically Underserved Area (MUA) by the Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

HPSA designation is a program designed to recruit and retain health professionals by allowing physicians holding J-1 visa's to practice in underserved areas. HPSA status is granted to areas that demonstrate a need in one or more of the following categories: primary care (including family and general practitioners, pediatricians, obstetricians, and general internists in allopathic or osteopathic practice), mental health and dental care.

"As the baby-boomer generation nears retirement age, the need for doctors, nurses, and healthcare professionals grows larger, while our capacity to recruit them contracts," said Acting Governor Cruz. "These designations give us the edge we need to compete with a world hungry for healthcare expertise."

In addition, Guam has also gained designation as a Medically Underserved Area which now provides an option for state-side doctors to work-off a portion of their medical education loans by serving as a physician on Guam.

"Our mission is to make healthcare better for everyone and we will use every tool available to accomplish this," said the Acting Governor. "I want to thank Governor Camacho, the men and women of the Department of Public health and Social Services for their tireless work on this effort."

Though Guam has benefited from these designations in the past, a change in federal procedures has required that Guam re-obtain them.