Veteran Mental Health Care: Expanded Open Arms Eligibility Broadens the Provider Workforce

Shane Warren

5 hours ago

3 min read

AWARENESS STATEMENT

For Immediate Release

3 October 2026

Veteran Mental Health Care: Expanded Open Arms Eligibility Broadens the Provider Workforce

AAMHP highlights the continuing implementation of reforms designed to improve access, choice and continuity of care for veterans and families

The Australian Association of Mental Health Practitioners (AAMHP) has welcomed the continuing implementation of changes that broaden the range of mental-health professionals eligible to deliver services through the Open Arms – Veterans & Families Counselling Outreach Program.

The reforms represent an important development in recognising the contribution that appropriately qualified practitioners from across the mental-health workforce can make to veteran and family wellbeing.

Changes to the Department of Veterans’ Affairs Treatment Principles made in July 2025 broadened the professional groups eligible to provide counselling through the Open Arms Outreach Program. DVA is now progressing implementation through a proposed refresh and expansion of its national provider panel.

Under the amended Treatment Principles, eligible professions include psychologists, occupational therapists, registered nurses, eligible social workers, PACFA clinical counsellors and Australian Counselling Association Level 3 and Level 4 counsellors, subject to the relevant professional requirements and approval arrangements.

AAMHP Chair Shane Warren said the progression from policy recognition to practical implementation was significant.

“It is important to recognise that these changes have been developing over time. The broadening of eligibility in 2025 created the policy pathway; the work now is ensuring that recognition translates into genuine additional access for veterans and their families.” [Shane Warren]

“Veterans and families do not all need exactly the same practitioner, intervention or pathway. Geography, clinical need, family circumstances, cultural fit and the therapeutic relationship all influence whether care is genuinely accessible.” [Shane Warren]

Open Arms has stated that the proposed expansion is intended to support a sustainable and responsive provider network, strengthen service capability and improve access to care, particularly in rural, regional and remote communities where workforce availability can be challenging.

AAMHP Secretary Susan Sandy said implementation would ultimately need to be judged by the experience of people trying to access support.

“Access is about more than expanding an eligibility list. People need to know where they can go, understand how they enter the service and be able to reach an appropriate practitioner when support is needed.” [Susan Sandy]

“For veterans and families outside major metropolitan areas in particular, a broader practitioner workforce has the potential to create more meaningful choice and stronger continuity of care.” [Susan Sandy]

The provider changes come alongside a separate decision by the Australian Government not to proceed with the proposed $5,000 allied-health service threshold that had been scheduled to commence from 1 July 2027.

Existing arrangements for eligible Veteran Card holders will continue, while previously announced increases in DVA allied-health provider fees remain scheduled to proceed.

AAMHP notes that the proposed allied-health threshold and the expansion of the Open Arms Outreach Program are separate reforms. Counselling and psychology services provided through Open Arms were not subject to the proposed threshold.

Implementation now matters

Expansion of professional eligibility does not automatically appoint individual practitioners to the Open Arms provider network.

Open Arms has advised that its provider panel is expected to be refreshed through a future Request for Tender process. A pre-release notice has been issued, but the final procurement process, timing and assessment arrangements are yet to be released.

AAMHP therefore encourages interested practitioners to monitor the formal DVA and AusTender processes and to carefully review professional eligibility, experience, scope-of-practice and procurement requirements when applications open.

Membership of AAMHP itself does not confer automatic eligibility for the Open Arms provider panel.

Shane Warren said the broader reform reflects an important principle for Australia's future mental-health workforce.

“Australia’s mental-health needs are too diverse for us to imagine that one profession or one pathway can meet every need. What matters is building a connected workforce in which qualifications, competence, scope of practice and referral responsibilities are clear and where the person seeking help can reach the right practitioner without unnecessary barriers.” [Shane Warren]

AAMHP will continue to follow the implementation of the Open Arms Outreach Program reforms and their implications for veterans, families and the broader Australian mental-health workforce.