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TOURISM Nevadans Applaud Obama's Tourism Initiative By Richard N. Velott asenior staff writer and Karoun Demirjianstaff writer Tourism industry leaders from across the country applauded President Barack Obama for signing an executive order and announcing initiatives that should increase travel to the United States. Against the backdrop of Florida's Disney World, Obama announced his new plan to assist a fledgling renaissance in the country's tourism sector — one that industry executives believe will also pay dividends in Las Vegas. Sen. Harry Reid and Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority President and CEO Rossi Ralenkotter led local cheers for Obama's initiatives, which have been sought by industry leaders for months. Obama's executive order will put four Cabinet departments in motion. The secretaries of Commerce and the Interior will form an interagency task force to make recommendations on a national travel and tourism strategy in coordination with Brand USA, the new public-private marketing company formed by the Travel Promotions Act Obama signed. The task force will focus on increasing tourism and recreation jobs at national parks, monuments, historic sites, wildlife refuges, cultural and historic sites. One of the nation's most visited parks, Lake Mead National Recreation Area, is 25 miles from Las Vegas and Southern Nevada has capitalized on air tours as the metropolitan area nearest Grand Canyon National Park. The Department of Commerce also has been charged in the executive order with maintaining a website with HEALTH CARE ST. ROSE HOSPITALS KEEP CHURCH TIES, BUT PARENT COMPANY SPLITS By Steve Greensenior staff writer Catholic Healthcare West, a big hospital operator in Southern Nevada and the fifth-largest health system in the nation, announced on Jan. 23 it had changed its name to Dignity Health. Dignity Health in the Las Vegas and Henderson areas owns the St. Rose Dominican Hospitals system, including the Rose de Lima, Siena and San Martin campuses. Those facilities opened in | 30 JANUARY 2012 | 1947, 2000 and 2006, respectively. San Francisco-based Dignity Health said it adopted the new name as part of a governance restructuring in which it will be a not-for-profit organization, rooted in the Catholic tradition. But it will not be an official ministry of the Catholic Church, a major change. The system was founded in 1986 when two congregations of the Sisters of SEE ST. ROSE PAGE 9 EMBA students on a corporate visit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. also will be required to increase non-immigrant visa processing in China and Brazil — two key tourism markets Southern Nevada has had its eyes on — by 40 percent in 2012. The departments also will be required to ensure that 80 percent of non-immigrant visa applicants are interviewed within three weeks of receiving an application. Travelers say they've had to wait up to three months to get an interview. State and Homeland Security officials also have been asked to expand the Visa Waiver Program and expand reciprocal trusted travel programs like Global Entry. The new task force has 90 days to report on increasing tourism and recreational travel, that will then be submitted to the Departments of Commerce and the Interior. The changes to the U.S. visa review process take effect immediately. Other initiatives launched by Obama today: ■ The departments of State and Homeland Security announced a pilot program to simplify and expedite the visa process for certain applicants, including the ability to waive interviews for low-risk travelers. ■ A push to draft the final rules to expand and make ASSOCIATED PRESS ON THE ROAD AGAIN: President Barack Obama speaks about tourism and travel on Jan. 19 at Walt Disney World in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. information and statistics from across the federal government to help the industry and travelers better understand the visa process. The departments of State and Homeland Security the Global Entry program permanent. Created in 2008, Global Entry is a program within Homeland Security and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agencies to expedite pre-approved, low-risk travelers when they arrive in the United States. There are 131 Global Entry kiosks at 20 airports in the United States, including units that have been at McCarran International Airport for two years. The program currently has SEE TOURISM PAGE 9 LEE BUSINESS SCHOOL Executive MBA Program PREPARE TO COMPETE… …In 18 months, every other Friday and Saturday. The Executive MBA program is designed for experienced managers who want to compete for top management positions by gaining a global understanding of business and the strategic perspective necessary to lead. For more information, call (702) 895-1367 or visit business.unlv.edu/emba 7