View Email Online

Week of August 21, 2023

Dear Tribal Leader Letters

View all of IHS' Tribal Leader Letters Here  

August 11 Letter: The IHS Deputy Director writes to Tribal Leaders to announce an additional virtual Tribal Consultation session on August 30, 2023 and provide a summary document of key items related to the updated DRAFT Indian Health Service Tribal Consultation Policy  

August 8 Letter: The IHS Director invites Tribal Leaders and Urban Indian Organization Leaders to participate in Agency-sponsored Listening Sessions on September 6, 2023 to share information and solicit input on advance appropriations implementation 

August 2 Letter: The IHS Director writes to Tribal Leaders inform you that the IHS will be accepting Small Ambulatory Program applications for Fiscal Year 2022 and Fiscal Year 2023 

August 2 Letter: The IHS Director writes to request your views and comments on the combined Fiscal Years 2016 and 2017 Report to Congress on the Administration of the Indian Health Service Tribal Self-Governance Program 

Announcements

TAC Vacancy Assistance

The National Indian Health Board organizes information on Tribal advisory committee (TAC) vacancies and can facilitate submitting nominations for vacancies. Contact Garrett Lankford, Federal Relations Analyst, at glankford@nihb.org for more information. 

Submit Nominations to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention /Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (CDC/ATSDR) Tribal Advisory Committee 

The CDC/ATSDR Tribal Advisory Committee currently has vacancies in the Alaska, Bemidji, Billings, California, Nashville, Oklahoma, Portland, and Tucson Areas, along with four Tribes-at-Large positions open. Nominations for these vacancies will be open through August 22, 2023. Contact the Office of Tribal Affairs and Strategic Alliances at TribalSupport@cdc.gov for more information on the nomination process.  

Department of Interior Self-Governance Advisory Committee and IHS Tribal Self-Governance Advisory Committee Meeting Information Available 

The Department of Interior Self-Governance Advisory Committee (SGAC) and IHS Tribal Self-Governance Advisory Committee (TSGAC) will meet in August 2023. The Department of Interior SGAC will meet on August 29 all day and the first half of August 30, while the IHS TSGAC will meet on the second half of August 30 and August 31 all day. NIHB will provide registration information as it becomes available.  

NIHB is Now Accepting Poster Abstracts 

Poster abstracts may be submitted by email to Jeannie Le at jle@nihb.org by Friday, September 1. Please include “Tribal Health Equity Data Symposium Poster” in the subject line. In your email, please include the following:   

• The full title of your poster to be used for the program, should your poster be accepted.  
• Abstract (maximum 200 words) 
• Authors and affiliations – Please indicate for ALL authors: full name, email, affiliation(s), city, state, and indicate which authors will be present for the poster session.  
• A short biography of the presenting author(s).  

Apply to the Certified Application Counselor Designated Organization (CDO) Program 

CMS invites new applicant organizations who want to become a CDO for Plan Year 2024 to apply during CMS’s Open Season August 1-December 15, 2023. Only organizations who complete the two steps below during the application window and receive a CDO ID from CMS can certify staff or volunteers as CACs in an FFM state to provide enrollment assistance services. To apply to become a CDO: 

• Access and complete the CDO application here. CMS will review your application and send a determination email with your application status. Please allow up to 10 business days for this review. 
• If CMS approves your application, you must access the CDO Organizational Maintenance Web Form (link provided in approval email) and submit a signed CMS-CDO agreement. CMS will then review your signed agreement and send a determination email. If CMS approves your agreement, you will receive a Welcome Packet email with a unique CDO ID. Please allow up to 5 business days for this review. 

Events

Participate in NIHB and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Regional Tribal Environmental Health Summit in Wisconsin

CDC and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) in partnership with the National Indian Health Board are hosting a series of Regional Tribal Environmental Health Summits this summer. The remaining summit will include discussions on climate change, emergency preparedness, water safety, land revitalizations, and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), as well as the new CDC Tribal Public Health Data tool. The summits will take place in Wisconsin on August 22-23.

Register for the Upcoming Tribal Health Equity Data Symposium on September 25 and 26 

National Indian Health Board will host the Tribal Health Equity Data Symposium on Monday, September 25 and Tuesday, September 26, 2023 in Washington, D.C. at American University. Note the new dates. The symposium will explore how we can reimagine the ways in which we use data to advance health equity for American Indians and Alaska Natives. We will hear diverse perspectives and participate in robust discussions about what it can look like to have a Tribally-driven, culturally-grounded approach to data collection, analysis, governance, and communications. Sessions will include a focus on both theory-based insights and practical applications. Some of the topics on the agenda include: 

• Measuring health equity: Considering Tribal sovereignty, strengths, and Indigenous identities 
• Promising practices in improving how we collect data about race & ethnicity 
• Challenges and opportunities in Tribal access to data held by federal & state agencies 

Registration is now open. This is a no-cost session, and registration is limited. Due to space constraints, we kindly ask that you only register if you intend to attend the symposium. For more information on the symposium and NIHB’s health equity work, please see nihb.org/health-equity. Questions and concerns can be directed to Jeannie Le at jle@nihb.org or Rochelle Ruffer at rruffer@nihb.org. 

Upcoming Tribal Advisory Committees & Tribal Consultations

Consultations

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Annual Regional Tribal Consultations Summer 2023: Each of the 10 HHS regions will again be hosting consultations with regional Tribes to discuss programmatic issues and Tribal priorities. Each session will include one-on-one opportunities with regional leadership. The remaining consultation dates are:  

August 22-24 | Region 6 | Dallas, TX

August 30-31 | Region 4 | Choctaw, MS

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Tribal Consultation 

This consultation will provide an opportunity for SAMHSA to engage with Tribal leaders and ensure meaningful and timely input from Tribes on the development of the Behavioral Health and Substance Use Disorder Resource for Native Americans program. 

Date: August 29, 2023 

Time: 4:00 PM ET 

Registration Link 

IHS Tribal Consultation on IHS Tribal Consultation Policy 

Date: August 30, 2023

Time: 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM ET

Registration Link

Written Comment Deadline: September 11, 2023 

Written Comment Submission: consultation@ihs.gov, subject line “IHS TRIBAL CONSULTATION POLICY” 

TAC Meetings

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Tribal Technical Advisory Committee (TTAC) 

Date: August 29, 2023  

Time: 1:00 – 4:00 PM ET  

Meeting Registration Link 

IHS’ Tribal Self-Governance (Self-Gov) Tribal Advisory Committee 

Date: August 30, 2023 – August 31, 2023 

Time: August 30 (Afternoon) - August 31 (All Day) 

Meeting Registration Link 

IHS Information Systems Advisory Committee (ISAC) Semi-Annual Meeting

Date: September 6 – 7, 2023

Meeting Link

Location: IHS Headquarters, Rockville, Maryland 

Community Health Aide Program (CHAP) Tribal Advisory Group (TAG) Meeting

Date: September 6 – 7, 2023

Meeting Link

Location: Portland, Oregon 

Direct Service Tribes Advisory Committee (DSTAC) Fourth Quarter Meeting

Date: September 12 – 13, 2023

Location: Rapid City, South Dakota 

IHS National Tribal Advisory Committee (NTAC) on Behavioral Health Quarterly Meeting 

Date: September 14, 2023

Time: 1:00 – 5:00 PM ET 

Meeting Link 

National Institute of Health All of Us Update for Data Access and Use 

Announcement Link  

Date: September 28, 2023 

Time: 1:00-3:00 PM ET 

Meeting Registration Link 

Listening Sessions

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Tribal Listening Session 

Date: August 29, 2023 

Time: 4:00 – 6:00 PM ET 

Meeting Registration Link 

IHS Listening Session 2: Advance Appropriations Implementation  

Date: September 6, 2023 

Time: 3:00 – 4:30 PM ET  

Meeting Link 

Notice of Funding Opportunity

FY 2022 and FY 2023 Small Ambulatory Program Application | Click Here to Learn More

Award Amount: $3,500,000 for up to 12 IHS Areas

Application Deadline: November 10, 2023

Description: Under the SAP, American Indian and Alaska Native Tribes or Tribal Organizations that are operating an Indian health care facility pursuant to a health care services contract or compact entered into under the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act, P.L. 93-638, as amended (25 U.S.C. § 5301 et seq.), may competitively apply for funding for the construction, expansion, or modernization of small ambulatory health care facilities. The FY 2022 budget includes $25 million and the FY 2023 budget includes $25 million for a total budget of $50 million available for SAP. Fiscal year 2022 and 2023 SAP projects will be awarded up to $3.5 million and all 12 IHS Areas that submit an application will have an opportunity to receive an award.

National Indian Health Board | www.nihb.org | 202-507-4070

Visit the NIHB COVID-19 Tribal Resource Center at www.nihb.org/covid-19