WASHINGTON, D.C.-Vice President Dick Cheney and Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez presented three U.S. organizations with the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, the nation’s highest honor for organizational performance excellence. 

The 2006 Baldrige Award recipients are:  Premier Inc., San Diego, service; MESA Products Inc., Tulsa, OK, small business; and North Mississippi Medical Center, Tupelo, MS, health care.