05.18.18

Hoeven: Fargo VA Selected as Whole Health Design Site

Initiative Created under CARA Legislation, Provides a Team-Based Approach to Ensure Personalized Health Care & Empowerment for Veterans

WASHINGTON – Senator John Hoeven, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee on Military Construction and Veteran Affairs, today announced that the Fargo Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Center has been selected to participate as a design site in the national VA’s Whole Health System initiative. The initiative focuses on providing a team-based care model that is patient-centered, personalized health care and addressing veterans’ broader well-being, including physical, emotional, mental, spiritual and environmental health and is being implemented under provisions included in the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA), bipartisan legislation that Hoeven helped pass in 2016.

“The Fargo VA already stands out as a high quality medical facility, and we welcome efforts to further strengthen the services it provides to our local veterans,” Hoeven said. “Personalized health care plans provide an opportunity to ensure all aspects of veterans’ well-being are considered and allow veterans to make more informed health care decisions. We continue working to open up more quality health care options like this for our veterans, whether through VA or non-federal facilities.”

The overall purpose of the initiative is to empower veterans to take a more active role in their care, working with a team of health professionals to better coordinate the services received and achieve better outcomes. As a design site, the Fargo VA will begin implementing specific elements of the initiative, while also working to expand existing efforts to provide more comprehensive health services.

Today’s announcement aligns with Hoeven’s efforts to improve veteran access to quality health care services both at the VA and through local providers. The senator continues working with the VA to design the next phase of the program and build on the success on the Veterans Care Coordination initiative at the Fargo VA Health Center, which has significantly reduced wait times for veterans seeking appointments in their local communities. The senator is also working to pass into law his Veterans Access to Long Term Care and Health Services Act to enable veterans to receive long-term care and health care services closer to home.

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