Collins announces $208K for Northern Light Health

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, vice chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced that six health care organizations in Maine have been awarded a total of $1,376,188 through the Health Resources and Services Administration’s Rural Northern Border Region Outreach Program. This funding will support critical initiatives aimed at improving access to health care services for rural and underserved communities across Maine.

Northern Light Health will receive $208,882. The grant funding is also allocated as follows: Healthy Acadia of Ellsworth, $250,000; Rangeley Region Health and Wellness Partnership, $250,000; The Harry E. Davis Partnership for Children’s Oral Health of Yarmouth, $250,000; Medical Care Development Inc. of Hallowell, $249,972; and MaineHealth of Portland, $167,334.

“Health care organizations across Maine are working tirelessly to improve the well-being of our residents,” said Collins. “This funding will provide vital resources to local health care providers, enabling them to address key health challenges and better ensure that even our most rural communities receive the care they need.”

HRSA’s Rural Northern Border Region Outreach Program is designed to increase the availability of health care services for rural and underserved populations in the rural Northern Border Regional Commission areas of Maine, New Hampshire, New York, and Vermont. Through this initiative, residents in rural areas will benefit from enhanced care and access to essential health programs, contributing to population-level health outcome improvements.

As vice chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Collins secured increased funding for the HRSA Rural Northern Border Region Outreach Program in Fiscal Year 2024 funding legislation.