Las Vegas Sun

March 19, 2024

EDITORIAL:

Sandoval has a chance to make a major investment

UNLV is asking the Legislature for $27 million over the next two years to launch a medical school in Southern Nevada, and although supportive, lawmakers implied it is Gov. Brian Sandoval’s decision. Why? Because Sandoval’s proposed budget for the medical school calls for only $8.3 million.

The governor should support the request for the multitude of ways the medical school will improve our health care and stimulate the region’s economy.

The problem

Las Vegas is the largest metropolitan area in the country without an M.D.-granting, allopathic medical school. Getting the $27 million over two years instead of three would allow the school to shoot for a 2017 opening.

If the governor doesn’t sign off on the additional funding, the school’s opening would be delayed by a year or more. That’s because if the agency that would accredit our medical school sees Nevada wavering in its support, the agency may lose confidence in our efforts and not want to revisit us for years.

What a delay would mean to health care

Nevada ranks 46th in the nation for number of doctors per capita. We feel that pinch every time we try to make an appointment to see a doctor. Sometimes, we have to leave Las Vegas altogether for specialists who are hard to find.

The UNLV medical school will develop young doctors more prone to complete residencies in Southern Nevada and, in turn, stay here — where three-quarters of Nevadans live — once they are fully minted. We will grow physician ranks from within.

But more than that, it would lift all areas of heath services, from federal grant money to diagnostics to biomes research and development. A state-led, publicly supported medical school lifts the entire health sector.

What a delay would mean to the economy

Medical schools have huge positive effects on local economies. They are magnets for federal grants and programs. They seed research projects that lead to biotechnology breakthroughs and commercial partnerships. They fuel employment in the bio-medical sector. In fact, the UNLV School of Medicine is expected to help grow the region’s gross domestic product by $1.1 billion by 2030.

The flip side of this scenario? Every year of delay will deprive the region of the economic boost it otherwise would receive. The $27 million we’re seeking from state coffers seems minuscule compared with delayed economic growth. And Nevada would continue losing $2 billion to other states in annual health care spending, according to Brookings Mountain West.

Why the state has a stake in this

In the larger scheme of Nevada’s economic development, the state has not been bashful about helping private enterprises because Nevada will prosper in the long run. Think Tesla, which was awarded more than $1 billion in tax breaks and incentives to build its gigaplant outside Reno.

Dan Klaich, chancellor of the Nevada System of Higher Education, put it this way when asking lawmakers for all $27 million now versus later: “This is truly an investment that will produce more economic activity. It will change the economy of Southern Nevada; it will help drive the economy of the state, it will produce more jobs and the kind we need. That doesn’t even talk about health care for Nevadans who deserve better health care.”

So, Gov. Sandoval, we look forward to your approval of a $27 million budget over the next two years for the UNLV School of Medicine. By every measure, it’s the right thing to do.

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