Dear Tribal Leader & Tribal Health Leader:

Good afternoon. My name is Dr. Aaron A. Payment (Sault Tribe). You may recall me from my past role as Tribal Chairperson, as a former Elected Officer of the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) or as a Member of the US Health and Human Services Secretary Tribal Advisory. I currently work as Government Relations Director of the National Indian Health Board (NIHB). In each of these roles, I have had the privilege of working with great teams of advocates to push for advance appropriations for Indian Health Service (IHS) funding to insulate Tribes from the impacts of Federal Government Shutdowns. We are very close but need your help to get across the finish line.

The Biden-Harris Administration has endorsed Advance Appropriations and included it in his Budget proposal. While the House Appropriations Committee did not initially signal support, the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Indigenous Peoples’ hearing on HR5549 expressed strong, broad bi-partisan support. The same day (7/28) the Senate Chair Appropriations Chair Patrick Leahy included advance appropriations for IHS in his Chairman’s appropriations mark. In previous Congressional Sessions, Senator Murkowski has been a co-sponsor singling bi-partisan Senate support.

Tribes need advance appropriations for the Indian Health Service (IHS) funding NOW. Our allies in Congress are asking for your stories to help get their colleagues on board. Members of Congress frequently ask, “Why do Tribes need Advance Appropriations?” and “How do funding disruptions harm Tribal Nations and their people?” 

The National Indian Health Board and the National Congress of American Indians are partnering to reach out to Tribes in order to amplify your voice and help save Native lives. We are collecting primary data from Tribes on the impacts of government shutdowns on the delivery of Indian Health Services (IHS) Programs. We will collect, analyze and report back to you so you have a single source of this information ready and at your finger tips.

Please complete our survey by clicking on the link below. Once you have completed the survey, you will be routed to a separate link to enter to win a Pendleton for taking this survey. It should only take 10 minutes of your time.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/8GFM8KY

Thank you!

For questions, please contact NIHB Director of Government Relations Aaron Payment, EdD, at apayment@nihb.org.