LAFAYETTE – Today, U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) toured the Bayou Bend Health and Wellness Center, which has served patients in St. Mary Parish since 1953 and provides many of the same services a patient can find at hospitals in large cities.
“As a doctor, I know that good health care is important for the individual, the family, and the community,” said Dr. Cassidy. “Families will move to a community based upon the quality of their health care. Bayou Bend is meeting those needs and then some.”
Last July, Cassidy reintroduced the bipartisan Treat and Reduce Obesity Act, which would expand coverage of chronic weight management medications and specialists within Medicare.
Additionally, Cassidy has introduced legislation to support rural health care and the communities they serve. That includes the Protecting Access to Ground Ambulance Medical Services Act to support rural ambulance services, the PEERS in Medicare Act to encourage peer counseling for senior citizens, and the CONNECT for Health Act to support telehealth through Medicare. The announcement by Cassidy and Governor Jeff Landry in August of $1.35 billion from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) for rural broadband will help provide the foundation necessary to expand telehealth throughout Louisiana.
Bayou Bend provides numerous medical services to its patients, including respiratory therapy, radiology, pain management and rehabilitation, maternity and newborn nursery services, and surgical care. Their Wellness Center features a fitness center with an indoor walking track, group exercise studios and a place for cycling, as well as space for wellness testing and expanded therapy. Cassidy toured both the hospital and wellness center and was led by Ms. Stephanie Guidry, CEO of Bayou Bend.
“We are so thankful that Senator Cassidy took some time out of his schedule for a tour,” said Ms. Guidry. “We had wonderful discussions about Bayou Bend’s growth and strategy to transition from treating illness to creating wellness in the communities we serve. During the tour of our Wellness Center, we share some patient success stories that illustrate our efforts to combat diseases like hypertension and diabetes through wellness initiatives. We also shared that in just our first year open, we’ve had over 100,000 check-ins to the facility, and members have recorded almost 10 million calories burned! Our team has done a tremendous job of providing a place that is ‘more than just a gym,’ and I think our community is better off because of it.”
Later, Cassidy visited local leaders in Morgan City, including the Mayors of Morgan City and Franklin and the Executive Director of the Morgan City Harbor and Terminal District. He led a discussion on improving St. Mary Parish’s infrastructure, among other topics. Cassidy’s IIJA has delivered millions of dollars throughout the parish, including nearly $20 million to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 2022 for construction, damage repairs, and levee surfacing replacements along the Atchafalaya Basin, and $10 million that October to expand the Port of Morgan City’s dock. Additionally, in a separate appropriation for Fiscal Year 2024, Cassidy secured $2.3 million to upgrade the emergency operations center at the port.
Along with mayors and other officials, Cassidy met with Mr. Evan Boudreaux, Director of Economic Development, Policy and Government Affairs for the parish.
“A critical factor in cultivating long-lasting economic growth in any community is having all of your partners come to the table to move the needle on addressing local challenges,” said Mr. Boudreaux. “Senator Cassidy is one of the best friends St. Mary Parish has. Without the leadership of Senator Cassidy on legislation such as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, St. Mary would not have been able to access or compete for funding to address some of our greatest hindrances to creating a more vibrant community.”
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