WASHINGTON – Today, Congressman Rick Crawford made good on his pledge to visit every hospital in the First Congressional district during his first year in Congress. Crawford’s visit to the Mississippi County Regional Medical Center in Osceola today completed his tour of First District hospitals.

“Access to quality, affordable healthcare is a real issue in Northeast Arkansas. Each hospital I visited has its own unique set of challenges. At every hospital I heard stories of intrusive government regulations that hurt the doctor patient relationship,” said Crawford. Our district is fortunate to have professionals who are dedicated to providing care to their patients, but doctors and nurses across the district are concerned about government’s role in healthcare. Government should never come between doctors and patients. In Washington, I will continue working to ensure government stays out of the healthcare business so the medical community can focus on patients and not government regulations.”

Crawford will continue to visit hospitals and healthcare professionals to learn about what he can do to help Arkansans have access to quality care close to home.

Crawford has visited all 21 First District hospitals since the beginning of the year