EKALAKA, MT – Continuing his 56 County Tour, Governor Greg Gianforte last week toured the Dahl Memorial Hospital in Ekalaka to meet with administrators and highlight the $17 million investment in rural health care.

“Increasing access to health care and world-class facilities like Dahl Memorial is critical for our rural communities,” Gov. Gianforte said. “We’ll continue to come alongside our providers who are offering lifesaving care and services to Montanans at every stage of life.”

Meeting with the newly hired CEO, Darrell Messersmith, hospital administrators, and staff, the governor saw the new facility and visited with several of the long-term care, senior residents.

Opened in 2021, the hospital represents a $17 million investment to improve the delivery of health care in rural eastern Montana. The facility employes 84 Montanans and has three emergency care rooms, 24 patient rooms, and 20 long-term care residents.

In addition to long-term care options, the hospital also offers patients access to physical therapy and, through its reference lab, can run comprehensive tests on patient lab work to assist other medical offices across Carter County.

To support staff and boost recruitment, Dahl Memorial also invested in a collection of apartments, houses, and trailers for traveling, international, and short-term staff working on one-year contracts or less.

Increasing the supply of affordable, attainable housing for doctors, nurses, and teachers to live in the communities where they work is a top priority for Gov. Gianforte.

And, in June 2023, the governor invested $300 million to improve the delivery of behavioral health care in Montana when he signed House Bill 872 into law. Proposed by the governor in his Budget for Montana Families, the historic investment will support needed repairs at the Montana State Hospital and expand intensive and community-based behavioral health care and developmental disabilities services across Montana.

The commission’s near-term investments of the funds included $2.5 million to support rural counties and tribal communities as they design and implement targeted, locally-developed solutions to behavioral health needs within their communities.