HAWTHORNE, December 4, 2007 - On Monday, Assemblymember Curren Price (D-Inglewood) joined representatives from the Little Company of Mary Health Care Organization at the opening of the new Vasek Polak Health Clinic. Residents of Hawthorne, and the surrounding District 51 communities of Lawndale, Inglewood and Gardena, have recently experienced the loss of hospital, emergency room and county clinic facilities. The need for an affordable alternative to meet their health care needs was great. "Access to quality, affordable health care is not just a community issue, it is a humanity issue," said Assemblymember Price. "It is our collective responsibility to ensure that it is a reality."

Hawthorne’s Robert F. Kennedy Medical Center closed in 2004. Community Hospital of Gardena and Daniel Freeman Memorial Hospital have both closed their emergency rooms. Before the opening of the Vasek Polak Clinic, County Harbor UCLA Medical Center was the nearest available facility for uninsured residents in the area.

Little Company of Mary designed and built the clinic to meet the needs of those uninsured and underserved residents, with an emphasis on health education and treatment of chronic diseases. There will be a flat fee of $50 per visit and the cost of any additional medical treatment will be augmented through grants, and charitable foundations. "I commend Little Company of Mary for responding to this vital need in our community," Said Price.

The Vasek Polak Health Clinic is located at 13355 Hawthorne Boulevard, in the City of Hawthorne.

Assemblymember Curren Price serves the 51st Assembly District, which includes Inglewood, Hawthorne, Gardena, Playa Vista, Westchester, Lawndale, West Athens, Lennox, Alondra Park, West Compton, Del Aire, and Willowbrook, as well as portions of the unincorporated area of Ladera.