LAWTON – The Board of Comanche County Commissioners has awarded a $630,075.49 grant to Comanche County Memorial Hospital, which will use the money to buy and install several Zoll cardiac defibrillators and monitors.
With little discussion, the board voted 3-0 Oct. 28 to amend the county’s notice of award of American Rescue Plan Act funds and a subrecipient agreement between the county and the hospital. The amended notice replaces a February 2023 grant agreement between the two entities.
The board had originally awarded ARPA funds to the hospital for internet and network upgrades as well as the defibrillators, Commissioner Johnny Owens said in an email to a Southwest Ledger reporter.
“It was decided to cancel the f iber optic project and reallocate all those funds to the defibrillator purchase project,” he said.
Owens said the cost of those two projects added up to $607,965.56, but the defibrillators cost $630,075.49. He said the county contributed additional ARPA money so the hospital could be reimbursed for the purchase. Treating COVID-19 patients The new equipment will help the hospital treat potential COVID-19 patients as well as Covid survivors who have lasting medical conditions, according to a project description by attorneys with the Norman-based law firm Floyd and Driver. The firm is advising Comanche County officials on ARPA-related expenditures.
“This advanced medical equipment will allow the hospital to provide better emergency medical treatment in a critical health situation,” the attorneys said.
The grant funds will come out of the county’s pot of American Rescue Plan Act money, part of a federal relief package designed to help local units of government recover from the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Oklahoma received about $1.87 billion in ARPA funds, and Comanche County’s share was approximately $23.45 million.
ARPA recipients must allocate those dollars by Dec. 31 of this year, and the money must be spent by the end of 2026.