Rep. Vince Fong Welcomes Navy Assistant Secretary and USDA Deputy Under Secretary to NAWS China Lake and Ridgecrest Regional Hospital - Working Together to Support Community Healthcare Needs

Yesterday, Rep. Vince Fong (CA-20) joined the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Manpower and Reserve Affairs, Franklin Parker, on a tour of NAWS China Lake and the Ridgecrest Regional Hospital (RRH). The visit also included a roundtable with Assistant Secretary Parker, leaders from NAWS China Lake, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Acting Deputy Under Secretary for Rural Development, Lillian Salerno, to discuss long-term solutions in healthcare for the area. This visit comes less than a month after Rep. Fong helped secure federal funding for RRH in collaboration with the Department of Defense to keep critical health services at the hospital.

“I would like to thank Navy Assistant Secretary Franklin Parker as well as the USDA’s Acting Deputy Undersecretary, Lillian Salerno, for joining me. Our tour of Ridgecrest Regional Hospital and NAWS China Lake highlighted the important work underway, and collaboration centered on strengthening healthcare within our community. I look forward to continuing to work with the Department of Defense and USDA’s Rural Hospital Technical Assistance Program to develop long-term solutions to support the healthcare needs of NAWS China Lake and the community of Ridgecrest,” said Rep. Fong.