Healthy Appalachia Institute

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – March -3rd-2017
CONTACT: Mitch Elliott - Innovations in Transit Mobility 276-523-7433- melliot@meoc.org

Big Stone Gap, Virginia —Today, Mountain Empire Older Citizens is pleased to announce that Big Stone Gap is one of six communities nationwide to receive an Innovations in Accessible Mobility grant from the National Aging and Disability Transportation Center (NADTC). The grant award of 47,215 dollars will be used to create a one-call center to assist the people in our area that have diabetes or a chronic illness to be able to access transportation and find help in navigating the health care system.

One hundred and thirty organizations representing thirty-seven states and two Tribal nations competed for these FTA cooperative agreement funds, which are managed by the NADTC. Grantees located in six communities in five states – Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Ohio and Virginia – will work to expand mobility opportunities that enable older adults and people with disabilities to better connect to employment, health care and other needed community services.

This grant will help us focus on four areas of concern in our region. Those with Diabetes that are on Dialysis .The veterans that need to travel from our area for specialized care. Those who have been diagnosed with cancer and those with a disability.

This is a joint effort with the Junction Center for Independent Living and Developmental Services operated by Frontier Health and local transportation board (MERTAC) and its members.

Dr. Timothy Showalter is a certified Radiation Oncologist at the University of Virginia's Health System. He provides radiation treatment for patients with genitourinary, gynecologic, and pediatric cancers, melanoma and sarcoma. As a clinical researcher Dr. Showalter is focused on developing more effective radiation therapy schedules and evaluating advanced technologies for brachytherapy and external beam radiation therapy.

Dr. Showalter is looking forward to working in Southwest Virginia on this cervical cancer pilot project. If you are interested in partnering with Dr. Showalter or have follow up questions and want to learn more about this opportunity, please complete this short survey.