Health Care | Senator Susan Collins

There is no question that our nation’s health care system requires substantial reform. The status quo of soaring health care costs, struggling families, and health care provider shortages across Maine and the nation is unacceptable. Senator Collins frequently works with her colleagues on both sides of the aisle to address these and other important issues facing our nation such as improved mental health care, drug treatment programs, supporting America’s caregivers, and nutrition programs.

As a native to northern Maine, Senator Collins understands the specific challenges that rural communities face for medical care. Throughout her time in the Senate, Senator Collins has consistently supported programs to expand access to and improve the health care system, particularly for citizens living in rural areas.

As a freshman legislator, Senator Collins founded the Senate Diabetes Caucus and has since led the effort to more than triple federal funding for diabetes research.

Following Announcement Of National Opioid Emergency, Durbin And Bipartisan Sponsors Of Medicaid Care Act Press Trump To Heed Own Commission’s Recommendations And Expand Access To Substance Abuse Treatment Under Medicaid

WASHINGTON – U.S. Democratic Senators Dick Durbin (IL), Sherrod Brown (OH), Joe Manchin (WV), and Cory Booker (NJ), Independent Senator Angus King (ME), and Republican Senators Rob Portman (OH), Shelley Moore Capito (WV), and Susan Collins (ME) today urged President Trump to lift the Medicaid Institutions for Mental Disease (IMD) Exclusion for residential substance use disorder treatment as part of his opioid emergency declaration.

Collins, King Announce $325,000 to the Northeast Telehealth Resource Center to Improve Health Care Access in Rural Communities

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King announced that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has awarded Northeast Telehealth Resource Center (NETRC) a total of $325,000 through its Telehealth Resource Center Grant Program. Senators Collins and King had written to the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), the agency within HHS that oversees the Telehealth Resource Center Grant Program, in support of NETRC’s grant application.

Senators Collins, Stabenow Announce TRICARE Will Cover New Care Plans for Families of Alzheimer’s Patients

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) today announced that the Department of Defense will cover new care plans to support Alzheimer’s patients covered through TRICARE and their families. More than five million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s, and more than 15 million people serve as their caregivers. The Senators had strongly urged the Department of Defense to make sure that anyone who receives TRICARE could also have access to these new care plans.

Collins, King Announce More Than $2.4 Million for Maine DHHS

Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King announced today that the Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) will receive a total of $2,436,632 for the Maine Center for Disease Control’s (CDC) Cancer Prevention and Control Programs. The funding was awarded through the U.S.

Senators Collins and Tester Introduce Legislation to Address Doctor Shortages and Train Next Generation of Physicians

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Jon Tester (D-MT) introduced the Training the Next Generation of Primary Care Doctors Act in response to the severe shortage of physicians that has reached crisis levels in a growing number of communities across the United States. Their bill would address this issue by reauthorizing and strengthening the successful Teaching Health Centers Graduate Medical Education Program, which trains physicians in underserved, community-based settings.

Senators Collins, McCaskill’s Plan to Improve Generic Drug Competition, Ensure Patient Access to Affordable Medication Heads to President's Desk

Washington, D.C. — Provisions authored by U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Claire McCaskill (D-MO) to improve generic competition and lower the cost of prescription drugs cleared the Senate yesterday as part of the FDA Reauthorization Act. The provisions, which were unanimously adopted as an amendment during the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee’s consideration of the legislation in May, will help foster a competitive marketplace to improve the affordability and accessibility of prescription drugs for patients.

U.S. Senators Collins, King Statement on Health Care Reform

Washington, D.C. —U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King released the following statement on health care reform:

“During the course of the past year, we met with thousands of people across our state to discuss ways to improve our health care system.

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Young Mainers Tell Senator Collins’ Committee Type 1 Diabetes Won’t Stop Them from Achieving Their Dreams

By: Sen. Susan M. Collins

With its magnificent buildings, monuments, and memorials, Washington is a city of inspiring sights. Just as inspiring was the sea of blue shirts worn by the more than 160 young delegates who participated in a recent hearing that I chaired on how diabetes affects people of all ages and their families.

Collins, King Announce $185,413 in Funding to the University of New England to Support Addiction Research

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King announced today that the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) has awarded a grant totaling $185,413 to the University of New England (UNE). The grant will help fund research into the therapeutic potential of interferon (IFN)-beta for HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders in opioid users.

ICYMI: Senator Collins Discusses Health Care on NBC’s “Meet the Press”

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Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Susan Collins appeared on NBC’s “Meet the Press” with host Chuck Todd to discuss health care.

A transcript of the interview follows:

“Meet the Press”
July 30, 2017

ICYMI: Senator Collins Discusses Health Care on CNN’s “State of the Union”

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Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Susan Collins, a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, appeared on CNN’s “State of the Union” with host Jake Tapper to discuss health care.

A transcript of the interview follows:

NIH States $597 Million in Additional FY 2019 Funding Needed for Alzheimer's Research

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Susan Collins, the Chairman of the Senate Aging Committee, released the following statement after the National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced today that $597 million in additional FY 2019 funds will be needed to meet the goal of preventing or effectively treating Alzheimer’s by 2025. This goal was established by the National Plan to Address Alzheimer’s Disease, which was created under the National Alzheimer’s Project Act (NAPA), authored by Senator Collins and then-Senator Evan Bayh (D-IN), in 2011.

Sen. Collins' Statement on Health Care Vote

Senator Susan M. Collins

Statement on Health Care Reform

July 27, 2017

Few issues are as important or personal to the American people as health care, which is why this debate has been so fervent and ignites such passion.

Senator Collins with Children’s Congress delegates

Charlie Albair, 10-Year-Old Gray Native with T1D, Testifies Before Senator Collins’ Committee on Importance of Finding a Cure for Diabetes

Washington, D.C. - “I want my disease to go away – for me and all the other kids who suffer from it. I want us all to be able to live without thinking about it. That’s why I am here,” said 10-year-old Gray native Charlie Albair at a hearing chaired by U.S. Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) this morning.

Collins, King Announce Nearly $6 Million for the Maine Department of Health and Human Services

Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King announced today that the Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) will receive $5,989,945 through the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Hospital Preparedness Program (HPP) and Public Health Emergency Preparedness Program (PHEP).

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ICYMI: Senator Collins on CBS’s “Face the Nation” 7.23.17

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Senator Collins tours Maine Medical Center Research Institute

Senator Collins Announces $20 Million Grant for Maine Med Research Institute, Tours Cutting-Edge Facility

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Senator Collins Secures Provision to Protect Prescription Paper Inserts

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Susan Collins announced today that the Senate Appropriations Committee approved language she authored to continue to protect prescription paper inserts. The provision was included as part of the fiscal year (FY) 2018 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration and Related Agencies Appropriations bill at the request of Senator Collins, a senior member of the Appropriations Committee.

Collins, King Announce $1.35 Million Loan to Fish River Rural Health Center to Help Build Medical Facility in Fort Kent

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King today announced that Fish River Rural Health Center has received a loan of $1,350,000 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to support the construction of additional facilities at its Fort Kent location. Fish River Rural Health is a Federally Qualified Health Center and has facilities in Eagle Lake and Fort Kent. The loan was allocated through the USDA’s Community Facilities Direct Loans and Guaranteed Loans program.

Senator Collins’ Statement on Senate Plan to Repeal ACA without a Replacement

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Susan Collins (R-ME), a member of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, issued this statement on the planned vote to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA) without a replacement:

“I will vote no on the motion to proceed to repeal the Affordable Care Act without a replacement. I voted against this same proposal in 2015.

Senator Collins Continues to Protect Northern Maine Veterans’ Access to Health Care

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Susan Collins announced that the Senate Appropriations Committee approved a provision she authored aiming to preserve Northern Maine veterans’ access to health care. Senator Collins is a senior member of the Appropriations Committee.

Specifically, Senator Collins’ provision directs the Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs to ensure that veterans who participated in the Access Received Closer to Home (ARCH) pilot maintain continuity of care through the use of provider agreements.

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ICYMI: Senator Collins Discusses Health Care on ABC’s “This Week”

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Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Susan Collins appeared on ABC’s “This Week” with host Jonathan Karl to discuss the Senate health care bill.

A transcript of the interview follows:

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ICYMI: Senator Collins Discusses Health Care, Russia Investigation on CNN’s “State of the Union”

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Senator Collins Welcomes Report on Pain Management and the Opioid Epidemic

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Susan Collins, Chairman of the Senate Aging Committee, welcomed the findings and recommendations of a National Academies of Sciences (NAS) study released yesterday. Titled, “Pain Management and the Opioid Epidemic: Balancing Societal and Individual Benefits and Risks of Prescription,” the report provides background on the opioid epidemic, including trends, risk factors, progress, and future directions in pain and opioid use disorder. It also includes policy-making recommendations going forward.

Collins, McCaskill Plan to Tackle Cost of Rx Drugs Passes U.S. House

WASHINGTON – Bipartisan legislation mirroring a plan by U.S. Senators Susan Collins of Maine and Claire McCaskill of Missouri to increase competition for generic drugs and lower prescription costs has passed the U.S. House of Representatives as part of a Food and Drug Administration reauthorization bill.

Food and Drug Administration Announces Action Plan that Mirrors Collins, McCaskill, Cotton, Franken Bipartisan Bill to Lower Cost of Prescription Drugs

Washington, D.C. - U.S.

Senator Collins Tweets on Senate Health Care Bill: “I Will Vote No on Motion to Proceed”

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ICYMI: Senator Collins Discusses Health Care on ABC’s “This Week”

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Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Susan Collins appeared on ABC’s “This Week” with host George Stephanopoulos to discuss the Senate health care bill.

A transcript of the interview follows:

“This Week”
June 25, 2017

Senator Collins Urges Leader of FDA to Support Policies That Address Opioid Abuse Crisis, Reduce Prescription Drug Prices

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Highlighting Bipartisan Plan to Lower Cost of Prescription Drugs, Collins, McCaskill Praise Food and Drug Administration Chief’s Remarks

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Claire McCaskill (D-MO) were encouraged by recent remarks by the head of the Food and Drug Administration in support of solutions to help keep prescription drugs affordable and improve patients’ access to medication, echoing the Senators’ bipartisan efforts.

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