Guam governor warns $104 million in ARP hospital funds may be lost without action

Governor Lou Leon Guerrero told the 30th Guam Legislature that roughly $104,000,000 in American Rescue Plan funds earmarked for a new hospital are at risk if the commonwealth does not act before the funding window closes in about 10 months. She framed the potential loss as a concrete consequence that would delay care and force patients to travel off island for treatment.

"If we do nothing, Guam will lose a $104,000,000 in American Rescue Plan funding," the governor said, warning that loss "will not be rhetorical" and would be felt in delayed care and patients forced off island. She said those dollars could be used either to build a new hospital or, if a full facility is not yet feasible, to build critical infrastructure that makes a hospital possible.

The governor said the Attorney General has impeded progress. "The Attorney General has chosen obstruction and denial, denying with every passing day the opportunity to begin the work of building a new hospital," she stated. In the transcript there is no recorded response from the Attorney General or other attendees to that allegation during the address.

Lou Leon Guerrero also cited steps to expand clinical partnerships and training at Guam Memorial Hospital, saying the hospital is strengthening a partnership with Keck Medicine of USC to expand specialty care and clinical training on island.

The governor asked the Legislature to act to protect the funding and to prioritize projects and infrastructure that would allow a modern facility to be built and sustained. The address did not record any formal legislative action or reply to the specific allegation about the Attorney General during the session.

Next steps: the Legislature can request documentation about the ARP funding timelines and legal barriers, and schedule follow‑up hearings or briefings with the executive branch and the Attorney General to clarify legal obstacles and funding conditions.