HR1037 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1037 LRB094 19940 HSS 57270 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, On June 1, 2006, Earl C. Bird will retire as President of the Metropolitan Chicago Healthcare Council (MCHC) and bring to a close an enormously successful career serving as the voice for hospitals throughout northern Illinois; and

WHEREAS, MCHC is a membership and service organization comprised of more than 140 hospitals and health care organizations from throughout northern Illinois and has for nearly 75 years assisted its members through collective initiatives that facilitate the integration and improvement of the delivery of health care services within the communities they serve; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Bird began his career in health care, which spans more than three decades, when he became the Director of Human Resource Services for the Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, Michigan; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Bird first joined MCHC in 1972 and later became its Senior Vice President in 1983; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Bird became the voice of northern Illinois' hospital community when he because President of MCHC in 1985; and

WHEREAS, Under Mr. Bird's leadership, MCHC initiated numerous programs and services that assist MCHC members in meeting their missions and serving their communities, including the hospital employee benefit program, which provides health insurance coverage to more than 120,000 employees and their dependents, a group purchasing program and other important services; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Bird has led the fight to ensure that health care is available to our most vulnerable patient populations and organized hospital support for the construction of the John H. Stroger Hospital of Cook County and the creation of the Illinois Poison Center, which provides around-the-clock poison treatment services to more than 100,000 Illinoisans annually; and

WHEREAS, Under Mr. Bird's leadership, MCHC has become a nationally-recognized leader in disaster and emergency preparedness; and

WHEREAS, During his tenure Mr. Bird also provided a tremendous service and support to public policy makers at the local, State, and national levels; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Bird served as Chairman of the U.S. Conference of Metropolitan Hospital Associations (CMHA) and its Committee on Urban Health, as a member of the American Hospital Association's Governing Council for Metropolitan Hospitals, as a member of Governor Jim Edgar's Illinois Health Care Reform Task Force, and as a member of Mayor Richard M. Daley's Chicago and Cook County Health Care Summit and the Cook County Ambulatory Care Council; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we recognize and commend Earl C. Bird for the service and leadership he has provided to northern Illinois' hospitals and the communities they serve; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Earl C. Bird as a token of our esteem.