Highlights from the 2016 National Tribal Nations Annual Health Conference

Lisa Pivec, Sr. Director of Public Health receives a NIHB 2016 Area Impact Award for leading the Cherokee Nation to be the first Tribal health department to achieve public health accreditation! Read the press release. More about public health accreditation…CLICK HERE

At the Tribal Nations Health Conference of the National Indian Health Board, leading Senate staffers and Tribal leaders discussed legislative options to reform IHS. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs Republican and Democrat staff participants included Emily Newman, Chairman Barrasso's Counsel (left), Caitrin Shuy, NIHB Director of Congressional Relations (center) and Kim Moxley, Vice Chairman Tester's lead health staff (right). "There is a real understanding that we can't be waiting around to make IHS improvements," said Newman.

Dr. Ann Bullock Director with the Division of Diabetes Treatment and Prevention, IHS (Left) and Chairman Patrick Marcellais NIHB Great Plains Area Representative (Right)

Chairman Vinton Hawley NIHB Vice-Chair and Phoenix Area Representative speaks during the opening Plenary ceremonies.

 

NIHB Chairman Lester Secatero and Albuquerque Area Representative signs the Cultural Wisdom Declaration establishing the value and importance of AI/AN cultures to drive health policy

 

Key Tribal Leaders and NIHB Board of Director members who signed the Cultural Wisdom Declaration at the NIHB Opening Plenary

 

John T. Hammarlund of CMS "Can you hear the dreams crackling like a campfire? Can you hear the dreams sweeping through the pine trees and tipis? Can you hear the dreams laughing in the sawdust?...."

 

Councilman Chester Antone, Tohono O’odham Nation gives a blessing at the NIHB National Tribal Nations Health Conference

 

Survivors and fighters of cancer stand after a fireside chat on Cancer in Indian Country (Left to Right): Kathy Kitcheyan San Carlos Apache Tribe, Cathy Abrahamson Sault Ste Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, Kris Roads AICF, Stacy Bohlen NIHB, and Coco Villaluz Clearway Minnesota

 

CAPT. Mark Rives, Director of Office of Information Technology, Indian Health Service talks of new directions for health IT in Indian Country

 

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Coco Villaluz, ClearWay Minnesota gives a heartwarming testimony of her passion to fight for healthy cancer free lives for her community and children.

 

Cancer cannot beat our strong Native women..

 

Chairwoman Lisa Elgin, NIHB California Area Representative gives remarks at a NIHB plenary event.

 

Cathy Abramson, Sault Ste Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians gives remarks at a NIHB plenary event.

 

Chairman Patrick Marcellais NIHB Great Plains Area Representative (Right)

 

Mark LeBeau, PhD, California Area Rural Indian Health Board, Executive Director “We ARE looking for Medicaid Expansion in every state”

 

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Dr. Ann Bullock Director with the Division of Diabetes Treatment and Prevention, IHS encourages the fight against Diabetes in Indian Country

 

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Gretchen Dobervich, Policy Program Manager, North Dakota State University speaks to Outreach and Education best practices for Indian Country and Health Insurances coverages

 

Lina Rashid, Senior Advisor for the Principal Deputy Director of the Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight

 

Alida Montiel, Director of Health Systems, Inter Tribal Council of Arizona

 

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Today, at the Tribal Nations Health Conference of the National Indian Health Board, leading Senate staffers and Tribal leaders discussed legislative options to reform IHS. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs Republican and Democrat staff participants included Emily Newman, Chairman Barrasso's Counsel (left), Caitrin Shuy, NIHB Director of Congressional Relations (center) and Kim Moxley, Vice Chairman Tester's lead health staff (right). "There is a real understanding that we can't be waiting around to make IHS improvements," said Newman.

Dr. Gerald Hill from AAIP (Left) DR. Don Warne (NDSU)

 

DR. Gerald Hill with AAIP speaks at the Workforce Development Luncheon

 

NIHB Executive Director, Stacy Bohlen gives remarks at the Workforce Development Luncheon

 

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Alberta Unok ANTHC (Left), Verne’ Boerner ANHB (Middle), Stacy Bohlen NIHB (Right)

 

A conference exhibitor poses for a picture during a long day of talking to attendees

 

Lincoln Bean, Chairman NIHB Alaska Area Representative, and Excited Conference Attendee pose for a shot

 

Mirtha R. Beadle, M.P.A speaks on SAMSHA’s initiatives for the coming year

 

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NIHB Focus Areas

News

Posted: September 23, 2016

National Indian Health Board Stands with Standing Rock

Scottsdale, AZ - The National Indian Health Board (NIHB) Board of Directors signed a resolution in support of the Standing Rock Sioux Nation at the National Tribal Nations Health Conference on September 22, 2016.

The NIHB is dedicated to assisting and promoting the health needs and concerns of Indian people. The prevention of harm to the health and well-being of Indian people is an essential aspect of the purpose of NIHB. The Board believes water is the foundation of all life on Earth and its preservation is essential to human survival...

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Posted: September 21, 2016

Acknowledging Challenges, Authoring the Future for Indian Country

Today marks the close of the first official day of the National Indian Health Board’s (NIHB) National Tribal Nations Health Conference, also known as the 33RD Annual Consumer Conference. NIHB is pleased to report that more than 800 Tribal leaders and health professionals joined us for our official opening ceremony! Taylor Talbi’Denzhoone Susan, Miss Indian Arizona, began the events for the day with a blessing and song, wishing all attendees a productive and safe time while attending the conference.

Over the course of the opening plenary, several ground breaking announcements were made, such as Principal Deputy Director of the Indian Health Service, Mary Smith, announcing a telemedicine contract for the Great Plains Area with Avera Health. Avera will provide care across 10 different specialty areas for all 19 service units. The announcement was met with a standing ovation from the NIHB Board of Directors and Great Plains Tribal leaders in attendance. Patrick Marcellais, the NIHB Great Plains Representative and Councilman of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians, said, "This is a terrific move that will make a huge difference to the Tribes in the Great Plains."

While acknowledging the health challenges facing American Indians/Alaska Natives, the tone of the plenary was one of making progress and creating solutions. As Ms. Smith stated, “If we are not talking about the difficult things, then we are not moving forward.”...

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Posted: September 20, 2016

NOW AVAILABLE!
Affordable Care Act Toolkit for Native Youth!

With the launching of Generation Indigenous in 2014, the Obama Administration showed the American people the heritage, tradition, and perseverance of Native people in this country. But more importantly, this movement helped Native youth to recognize the responsibility of continuing this energy for generations to come.

The direct creation of Generation Indigenous is to help remove barriers that stand between Native youth and their opportunity to succeed. While these barriers are numerous for many Native youth, the National Indian Health Board acknowledges that some of the most debilitating barriers to success that a young Native person faces are directly related to the health and wellbeing of themselves and their communities. According to the Centers for Disease Control the AI/AN youth demographic has drastic rates of diabetes type 1 and 2 among people younger than twenty years old . Furthermore, AI/AN adolescents are 50 percent more likely than non-Hispanic Whites to be overweight . These statistics illustrate large problems around obtaining quality of health and wellness for young people in Indian Country. Furthermore, they do not highlight the additional barriers unique to Indian Country for addressing these health disparities. These are, but not limited to, accessing affordable health insurance, proximity to quality healthcare providers, in addition to the high rates of health issues that impact Indian Country and its Native youth greatly.

This toolkit was created in generous partnership with the Indian Health Service. All content and materials within this toolkit are free for download and distribution.

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Posted: August 30, 2016

National Indian Health Board and Great Plains Tribal Chairmen's Health Board Meet to Discuss New Strategies to Improve Health Systems for American Indians and Alaska Natives

RAPID CITY, SD - Today, the National Indian Health Board (NIHB) and Great Plains Tribal Chairmen's Health Board (GPTCHB) met in a historic joint meeting to discuss Health Systems Improvement for American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/ANs). The meeting was called after a series of reports by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) found that certain facilities in the Great Plains Area of the Indian Health Service (IHS) are providing substandard care and failing to live up to the federal trust responsibility for health. Specific topics covered included how to increase the number of Native physicians in the workforce, ways to restructure the IHS in the Great Plains Area, increasing funding to the IHS, moving from direct service models to self-governance models of healthcare and ways to leverage existing relationships and federal Tribal advisory committees like the Secretary's Tribal Advisory Committee to get additional federal resources to Tribes...

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Posted: August 3, 2016

IHS Issues Multiple 'Dear Tribal Leader Letters' initiating Tribal Consultation on Several Initiatives

On July 29th, the Indian Health Service (IHS) released several 'Dear Tribal Leader Letters' updating Tribes on several Tribal consultation opportunities regarding recent policy proposals put forth by IHS.

First, IHS has extended the consultation period for its Tribal Premium Sponsorship Draft Circular. Tribal Premium Sponsorship occurs when a Tribe pays health insurance premiums on behalf of its IHS eligible members. By enrolling members in health insurance, it increases third party revenue to the IHS/Tribal facility which allows them to extend the services that they provide. Tribes have until October 31, 2016 to provide comment on this draft circular. In addition, an in-person Tribal consultation opportunity will be available at NIHB’s National Tribal Health Conference on September 19, 2016...

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Posted: July 18, 2016

NIHB Advocates for Continued Partnership and More Tribal Input to Improve Indian Health

On July 12, 2016, the National Indian Health Board (NIHB) testified on behalf of all 567 federally recognized Tribes in a hearing held by the U.S. House of Representatives Natural Resource Committee's Subcommittee on Indian, Insular, and Alaska Native Affairs. The legislative hearing was held on H.R. 5406, the "Helping Ensure Accountability, Leadership, and Trust in Tribal Healthcare (HEALTTH) Act", recently proposed by Representative Kristi Noem (R-SD). The HEALTTH Act is just one of several recent pieces of legislation that aim to address the longstanding, systemic issues within the IHS that have led to crisis situations - especially, in the Great Plains Service Area. In the last year, several hospitals in this region have lost, (or received threats of revocation) their ability to bill Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) due to the failure of federally run sites to comply with basic safety and regulatory procedures...

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Posted: July 7, 2016

Creating a National Indian Health Service Community Health Aide Program

On June 1, 2016, IHS initiated tribal consultation through a Dear Tribal Leader Letter and a draft policy statement titled, "Creating a National Indian Health Service Community Health Aide Program." A national Community Health Aide Program (CHAP) would increase access to quality health care for American Indians and Alaska Natives through the expansion of community health aides at facilities operated by tribes and the Indian Health Service (IHS), including administrative requirements, such as the creation of a national certification board. To assist tribes with developing thoughtful comments, the National Indian Health Board (NIHB), in partnership with the Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board (NPAIHB) developed a Briefing Paper to provide some background information on the CHAP program and some preliminary ideas on what to include in any comments that tribes might submit. On July 7, NIHB and NPAIHB held a tribal-only call to solicit initial feedback on IHS’ proposal and answer any questions.

On July 15, NIHB will provide tribes with another opportunity to learn more about the CHAP program and its success in Alaska through a webinar from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. eastern. The purpose of the webinar will be to provide a more comprehensive overview of the CHAP program and answer any remaining questions that tribes might have.

Agenda:

  • Welcome & Purpose of the Webinar: Devin Delrow, Director of Federal Relations at the National Indian Health Board
  • CHAP Overview in Alaska: Dr. Robert Onders, Medical Director Health Systems and Community Services at Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium
  • Review How the Program Can Be Replicated: Christina Peters, Oral Health Director at NPAIHB
  • Questions: All presenters

WEBINAR REGISTRATION LINK:

https://kauffmaninc.adobeconnect.com/wkkf20160715/event/registration.html

For more information on joining the webinar, please contact Sarah Freeman at [email protected]


Posted: July 7, 2016

NIHB Advances 17 Tribal Recommendations During Senate Committee Field Hearing

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: During the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs (SCIA) oversight field hearing on Friday, June 17, in Rapid City, South Dakota, the National Indian Health Board (NIHB) put forth 17 recommendations for improvement of the Indian health system. The hearing, "Improving Accountability and Quality of Care at the Indian Health Service Through S. 2953", focused on legislation proposed by U.S. Senator John Barrasso (R-WY), chairman of the Committee, and Senator John Thune (R-SD), titled the Indian Health Service Accountability Act of 2016...

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Posted: June 29, 2016

NIHB and NPAIHB Tribal Only Call on the Creation of National IHS Community Health Aide Program (CHAP)

The National Indian Health Board and the Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board (NPAIHB) will be hosting a Tribal Only call on the Creation of a National Indian Health Service Community Health Aide Program (CHAP) on Thursday, July 7, 2016 at 4:00PM ET to discuss the proposed comments and provide input on the creation of a national Indian Health Service Community Health Aide Program (CHAP). Comments on the Creation of a National Indian Health Service CHAP are due to IHS no later than July 29, 2016. NIHB and NPAIHB will work collaboratively to develop a template Tribal comment letter to assist Tribes in making their own comments. NIHB and NPAIHB have created a briefing paper on CHAP for Tribes. Please contact Devin Delrow ([email protected]) for call-in information.


Posted: June 2, 2016

Tribal Exemption from Employer Mandate

The Tribal Employment and Jobs Protection Act (H.R. 3080) was considered in a Full Committee Markup of the U.S. House of Representatives House Ways and Means Committee:
H.R. 3080 was reported favorably by the Committee on a vote of 24 (yes) - 13 (no)

This legislation, introduced by Representative Kristi Noem (R-SD), seeks to exempt Tribes and Tribal employers from the employer mandate under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). It would prevent fines that Tribal employers would incur under the employer mandate and ensure that the U.S. federal government lives up to its trust responsibility to federally recognized Tribes.

As the House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX) said today in his opening statement, "Congresswoman Noem's legislation brings relief from Obamacare's employer mandate to Tribally owned businesses...by advancing these bills today, we can demonstrate that we are serious about addressing major challenges in child welfare and health care."

The legislation will now move to be considered by the full House of Representatives. NIHB will continue to monitor and provide updates on this important legislation. If you have questions or feedback regarding this issue, please contact Mr. Devin Delrow, NIHB Director of Federal Relations, at (202)-507-4070 or [email protected].


Posted: June 2, 2016

Indian Health Service Seeking Tribal Consultation on the Catastrophic Health Emergency Fund (CHEF) Proposed Rule

Yesterday, the Indian Health Service (IHS) released a Dear Tribal Leader Letter to provide an update on the proposed rule for the Catastrophic Health Emergency Fund (CHEF). Several Tribes and Tribal Organizations, including the National Indian Health Board (NIHB), submitted comments and expressed concerns about the provisions and requested Tribal consultation before finalizing the rule. In response, IHS is listening to Tribes and will not move forward with the proposed rule until Tribal consultation has taken place, which will include two telephone consultation sessions and an in-person consultation session at the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) Convention scheduled for October 9-14, in Phoenix, Arizona...

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Posted: June 1, 2016

Indian Health Service Seeking Tribal Consultation on Draft Policy to Expand Community Health Aide Program

Today the Indian Health Service (IHS) released a Dear Tribal Leader letter requesting Tribal Consultation on a draft policy statement detailing the planned national expansion of the Community Health Aide Program (CHAP, including the creation of a national certification board.

The national expansion of the CHAP would mean an increase in paraprofessionals and workers providing services for health education, communicable disease control, maternal and child health, dental health, behavioral health, family planning, and environmental health. Community health aide is an encompassing term that includes behavioral health aides, nursing aides, and dental health aides. Many Tribal communities are likely familiar with a community health aide program already in place: the IHS Community Health Representative (CHR) program. The CHR deploys trained and medically guided health care workers that provide medical services, including health education, case management, patient transport, and patient advocacy.

Tribal communities in Alaska also benefit from the Dental Health Aide Therapist (DHAT) program, which brings dental education and routine dental services to rural Alaska Native communities. DHATs provide dental services to 40,000 Alaska Native people since 2004. Many rural Alaskan Native villages also have Community Health Aides (CHA). CHAs serve as a primary provider for many individuals, providing emergency first aid, patient examinations and follow-ups in conjunction with the treating physician, and carrying out treatment recommendations, education and instruction, and conducting preventive health programs. Behavioral Health Aides (BHA) work within Tribal communities to address behavioral health needs, including substance abuse and mental health problems. BHAs address these needs by serving as counselors, health educators, and advocates.

With a low access to care in many Tribal communities and tremendous success in existing programs, the Indian Health Service is committed to expanding the Community Health Aide Program. In the draft policy statement Mary Smith, Principal Deputy Director of the IHS, states, "Not only do CHAPs contribute to the overall health care team, but the additional advanced training they receive often leads to improved health and quality of life for the communities they serve. CHAPs are proven partners in health, and the IHS is committed to seeing them expand outside of the State of Alaska."

In the coming weeks, NIHB will be reaching out to Tribes and Tribal organizations for their input on what they would like to see in the policy. Based on this input, NIHB will create a template comment and briefing memo for Tribes to use in submitting their own comments. If you would like a copy of these materials or more information, please contact NIHB’s Director of Federal Relations, Devin Delrow at 202-507-4072 or [email protected].

Comments are due to IHS on Friday, July 29, 2016.

Comments may be submitted to [email protected], with the subject IHS Expansion of Community Health Aide Program Draft Policy Statement Consultation.

Mail your comments to:
Alec Thundercloud, M.D.
Director, Office of Clinical and Preventive Service
Indian Health Service
5600 Fishers Lane Mail Stop: 08N34-A
Rockville, MD 20857
ATTN: IHS Expansion of Community Health Aide Program Draft Policy Statement Consultation


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