President Obama’s second attempt at health care reform includes reauthorization of IHCIA

Washington, DC (February 24) – As President Obama prepares for the health care reform summit on Thursday, his new proposal unveiled earlier this week keeps the provision of reauthorizing the Indian Health Care Improvement Act (IHCIA). 

Located in Title X of the proposal is the reauthorization as it was introduced and approved by Congress in two earlier bills. The section provides health care services to American Indians and Alaskan Natives. It will modernize the Indian health care system and improve health care for 1.9 million American Indians and Alaska Natives.

As in the earlier bills, IHCIA provisions included protection for the priority list for health care facilities, which includes five Navajo area facilities.   Additionally, a feasibility study exploring whether the Navajo Nation should be treated and administered as an independent Medicare entity was included. 

The IHCIA legislation, originally authorized in 1976 and last reauthorized in 1992, provides health care for American Indians and Alaska Natives to help fulfill the U.S. Government’s treaty and trust responsibilities to Native Americans.

The last IHCIA extension expired at the end of Fiscal Year 2001. While the government still continues to appropriate money for Indian health programs, this legislation would add standards to ensure the modernization of Native health care.

Obama’s  greater heath proposal seeks more bi-partisan support to make health care more affordable, make health insurers more accountable, expand health coverage to all Americans, and make the health system sustainable, stabilizing family budgets, the Federal budget, and the economy.

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