Washington, DC - Today, Senator Gordon Smith (R-OR) announced that Oregon Health Sciences University (OHSU) and TriWest, the contractor that administers Oregon's TRICARE program have reached an agreement which will preserve veterans' access to OHSU.

TriWest and OHSU had recently ended contract negotiations, removing OHSU as a "preferred provider" under the veterans' health care system. Last week, Smith wrote to Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld requesting his assistance and called a meeting between OHSU and TriWest to break the impasse.

"Our veterans sacrificed too much to leave them without access to the best medical care we can provide," Smith said. "Countless veterans and their families have contacted me because they lost access to their doctors and had disruptions in their care. Today's agreement is a victory for all those who have served our nation, and I am deeply gratified that cooler heads have prevailed."

OHSU's participation as a TRICARE preferred provider is vitally important to the 60,000 beneficiaries who call Oregon home. Classification of OHSU as a preferred provider under TRICARE enables beneficiaries to seek care at OHSU and receive coverage at a greatly reduced rate. For many, this enhanced coverage rate allows people access to the most appropriate and effective treatment. OHSU is one of only two Level 1 trauma centers in the state, and as a national leader in numerous research fields offers access to ground-breaking medical treatments. Failure to ensure OHSU's participation would have greatly diminished the treatment options available to our veterans and military personnel.