Senator Collins Lauds ARCH Extension Included In VA Reform Bill
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- U.S. Senator Susan Collins, a member of the Senate Veterans Affairs Appropriations Subcommittee, today lauded the inclusion of a two-year extension of the Access to Received Closer to Home (ARCH) program in Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) reform bill’s conference report. Senator Collins had urged members of the Conference Committee tasked with finding a compromise between the Senate and House versions of the bill to include such an extension.
“I am pleased that the conference report will contain a provision, that I worked hard to include, that would extend the highly-successful ARCH program,” Senator Collins said. “This program is a literal life-saver, and our Veterans in rural areas such as northern Maine will be well-served by its continuation.”
"The news we learned today that Project ARCH has been extended for two years, thanks in large part to the efforts of our Senator, Susan Collins, is life saving for Veterans living here in Northern Maine," said Kris Doody, CEO of Cary Medical Center. "So many Veterans have expressed their appreciation for the program that allows them to get specialty care close to their homes here at Cary Medical Center. We have always believed that the model we have established here at Cary is a model for the nation."
ARCH is a pilot program that provides VA-covered health care services through contractual arrangements with non-VA care providers. The program, which is set to expire later this year, improves access for eligible veterans—especially those in rural areas—by connecting them to health care services closer to home. Cary Medical Center in Caribou is one of five pilot sites that have been established across the country. The Togus VA Medical Center oversees treatment provided to veterans at Cary- allowing veterans in Aroostook County to receive quality care without traveling hundreds of miles roundtrip to Augusta.
The ARCH program has been an unqualified success in northern Maine, and Senator Collins has fought hard to ensure that these services continue past the pilot program’s scheduled end date of September 30, 2014. Her efforts include:
• On July 21, 2014, Senator Collins met with Bob McDonald, the nominee for Secretary of Veterans Affairs. The first issue she raised with him was ARCH, and she invited him to visit Cary Medical Center to see first-hand how the program is working and why it should be a model for the nation with respect to improving access to health care among rural veterans.
• On May 22, 2014, the Appropriations Committee adopted H.R. 4486, the Fiscal Year 2015 Military Construction and Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, which at Senator Collins’ request included a section providing $35 million to extend funding for ARCH in FY 2015. Senator Collins led a letter on July 16, 2014 to the leadership of the Senate and the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Appropriations Committee urging them to bring that bill to the floor as soon as possible.
• Senator Collins joined Senators Jerry Moran and Angus King in introducing the Veterans Health Care Access Received Closer to Home Act of 2014 (S.2095), which would extend and expand the program. She also introduced similar legislation as an amendment to S. 1982, the Comprehensive Veterans Health and Benefits and Military Retirement Pay Restoration Act of 2014, which would have made the program permanent.
• Senator Collins authored a letter in December 2013, expressing strong support for ARCH and requesting that it be continued. She also authored a June 2014 letter requesting VA take immediate steps to continue ARCH, given the funding she secured in the annual VA funding bill.
• Senator Collins has repeatedly advocated for continuing ARCH in congressional hearings [2013, 2014], directly with VA leadership, including former Secretary Shinseki, and with her colleagues.
