U.S. Sen. Mark Pryor received a leadership award for his work to channel federal funding to a UAMS health education program April 2.
The Bumpers award is given to proponents of the program and is named after Dale Bumpers who supported the creation of the Area Health Education Center program in 1973 during his time as governor.
"If you are in Scott County, you deserve high-quality health care just like if you lived in Little Rock," Pryor said. "We all know the numbers. In rural America there is just a disproportionately low number of doctors.
Pryor is working to secure federal funding for the program for the 2013 budget year and has secured funding for program for the last two years.
The AHEC program offers medical training to health care students and professionals. Additionally, it provides rural residents access to medical services. Eight AHEC programs serve various regions of the state.
The program receives about 600,000 dollars annually from the federal government.