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The federal government shutdown is in its second week.
Tribal leaders across the country are continuing to raise concerns saying Indian Country will bear the burden.
Matt Laslo has more from Washington.
No one knows the full extent of how this federal government shutdown will hit Indian Country, but policymakers are braced for pain to come.
Democrats continue banding together, demanding Congress intervene to keep Affordable Care Act, as known as Obamacare, insurance premiums from doubling in the coming months.
U.S. Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) says those rate hikes promise more pain than today’s temporary furloughs.
“Well, it just depends. Like, some government workers obviously will feel it when they don’t get their next paycheck, because they already got their first paycheck. But when people are really going to feel it is around November first when they start getting open enrollment and 24 million of them are going to have their insurance rates doubled.”
Take Indian Health Service (IHS).
While Medicare and Medicaid are first payers, IHS is a payor of last resort, which means the IHS budget is insulated for now, U.S. Sen. Markwayne Mullin (Cherokee/R-OK) told National Native News underneath the Capitol Dome.
“Right now nobody’s affected yet. They’re dealing off reimbursements and all their reimbursements come off Medicaid and Medicare, and, of course, that’s not affected by this.”
Even though Sen. Mullin isn’t worried about IHS cuts, he says that doesn’t mean Congress can shrug off the unseen impacts of a federal government shutdown.
“There is no pressure taken off of us. We’re in a shutdown. The thing is, is like when are level heads going to prevail in the Democrat Party? That’s what we’re waiting on.”
Indian Country was already reeling from federal cuts before the shutdown.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. may have rescinded IHS staffing cuts earlier this year, but U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM) says cuts to other parts of the federal health care budget have been felt across Indian Country.
“There’s a hospital in the state of New Mexico — an IHS facility — that no longer offers support for moms delivering kids or having babies. And that’s all because of the Trump administration and a direct result of the poor leadership coming from (Sec.) Robert Kennedy.”
(Courtesy Thurston County [WA] Board of Health)
Isobel Charle reports.
The change clarifies a 2020 state law that requires local boards of health to include members who are not elected officials, including tribal representatives.
Vicki Lowe is with the Jamestown S’Klallam and Bella Coola First Nation, and is the executive director of the American Indian Health Commission, a nonprofit that works with the state to promote wellness in Washington’s Native communities.
She said the previous language was not clear about who was responsible for appointing tribal representatives to health boards, or how many seats were available.
“I’m hoping going forward, we can get more tribes on these local boards of health and that local relationship and working together to keep all of our community healthy and safe will happen.”
Every county in the state has a local board of health that is tasked with enforcing health laws, controlling infectious diseases, and setting local policies.
Of Washington’s 29 federally recognized tribes, Lowe said so far about 15 have appointed someone to their local board.
Ashley Bell is the Tribal Liaison for the Washington State Board of Health. She said the new law respects and affirms tribal sovereignty and makes sure that tribes are a part of public health conversations.
“They are a part of the community and really have a direct impact on how community health happens.”
The Washington Board of Health is in the first stages of the rulemaking process for the new law which includes getting public feedback and consulting with the state’s tribes and urban Indian health organizations.
Bell said they are hoping to be done next July.
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