WHEREAS, the National Indian Health Board (NIHB), established in 1972, serves all Federally recognized American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) Tribal governments by advocating for the improvement of health care delivery to AI/ANs, as well as upholding the Federal government’s trust responsibility to AI/AN Tribal governments; and

WHEREAS, the Supreme Court ruled in Salazar vs. Ramah Navajo Chapter (2012) that the federal government must pay Contract Support Costs (CSC) to Tribes regardless of appropriation; and

WHEREAS, in FY 2014, Congress provided a pathway forward to fully fund FY 2014 CSC costs by removing budget-line caps and providing a lump-sum payment to the Indian Health Service (IHS); and,

WHEREAS, the on September 2, 2014, the IHS issued a letter to Tribal Leaders explaining that initial estimates of CSC need for FY 2014 were inadequate and that the agency would have to reprogram $48 million from the IHS budget in order to fully fund CSC; and

WHEREAS, $39 million of that reprogram request would come out of the Hospitals and Clinics line-item which is used to provide direct healthcare services to AI/ANs; and, NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that it is the official policy of the National Indian Health Board that CSC is fully funded without cuts to direct services and that cutting any portion of direct services to fund CSC for the remainder of FY 2014 is not acceptable; and,