Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians: Support for H.R. 5549, Indian Health Service Advance Appropriations Act

Summary

A letter on Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians letterhead, closing with the name of Regina Gasco-Bentley, Tribal Chairperson, to the Chair and Acting Ranking Member of the Subcommittee for Indigenous Peoples of the United States, with the subject line Support for H.R. 5549, the Indian Health Service Advance Appropriations Act. The letter states that the list of bipartisan cosponsors for H.R. 5549 has grown to fifteen and urges Congress to pass the bill to end what it calls undue suffering of Native people and unnecessary drain on taxpayer resources. It describes advance appropriations for IHS as a promise that the United States honors its treaty and trust obligations.

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Waganakising Odawak
Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians
Regina Gasco-Bentley, Tribal Chairperson

7500 Odawa Circle, Harbor Springs, Michigan 49740
Phone 231-242-1418 @ Fax 231-242-1411

The Honorable Teresa Leger Fernandez The Honorable Jay Obernolte

Chair Acting Ranking Member

Subcommittee for Indigenous Peoples of Subcommittee for Indigenous Peoples of
the United States the United States

Committee on Natural Resources Committee on Natural Resources

U.S. House of Representatives U.S. House of Representatives

1324 Longworth House Office Building 1329 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515 Washington, DC 20515

RE: Support for H.R. 5549, the Indian Health Service Advance Appropriations Act
Dear Chair Fernandez and Acting Ranking Member Obernolte:

I write to express support for H.R. 5549, the Indian Health Service Advance
Appropriations Act. Introduced by the late Representative Don Young and originally co-
sponsored by Representatives McCollum, Kilmer, Kind, Mullin, Cole, Johnson, and
Strickland, the list of bi-partisan cosponsors for H.R. 5549 has grown to fifteen. sha urge
Congress to pass this bipartisan policy solution to end the undue suffering of our people
and unnecessary drain on taxpayer resources.

Advance appropriations for the Indian Health Service (IHS) are a bi-partisan and bi-
cameral policy initiative that increases tribal and federal government efficiency, reduces
federal taxpayer waste, and, most importantly, saves Native lives by providing more
effective funding for health care service in Indian Country. Since advance appropriations
are merely advance agreements to provide funding at a later date, they are a budget-
neutral and flexible solution to the outsized impacts of funding disruptions on Indian
Country, allowing Congress to respond to changing real-world circumstances and
challenges. The result is continuity of services that reduce bureaucratic inefficiencies and
uncertainty for IHS and for Tribal Nations.

The Biden-Harris Administration supports advance appropriations and mandatory
funding for IHS—a historic shift in the paradigm of Nation-to-Nation relations that seeks
to restore the promises made between our ancestors and the United States. Advance
appropriations and mandatory funding are not mutually exclusive requests. However,
once IHS obligations are provided through mandatory direct appropriations, there is no
need for advance appropriations through the annual regular appropriations process. Until
such time that mandatory appropriations are provided, advance appropriations are a
fiscally responsible solution to the outsized impacts of disruptions and uncertainty in
funding on the Indian health care system.

H.R. 5549 is an improvement on the exception for IHS accounts provided in the FY 2022
Budget Resolution because it includes all of the accounts for the Indian Health Service
and not just certain accounts. This is an important improvement because of the nature of
inherently federal functions. Advance appropriations are not about more money in a
single accounting period, they are about advance agreements by Congress that provide
certainty and continuity of services promote efficiencies, and reduce taxpayer waste on
costly duplicative tribal and federal budgetary functions. If only certain funded accounts
are provided continuity of services while necessary and inherently federal IHS functions
remain subject to the stops and starts of the annual appropriations process, then Congress
is not utilizing the policy of advance appropriations to maximize its best fiscal features.

The coronavirus pandemic is not over, and funding certainty and stability are critical to
saving Native lives as we continue to combat the ongoing effects of COVID-19. The total
number of Coronavirus cases per week reported by IHS has been on the rise since April
2022, and experts believe the actual infection numbers for the United States in the first
week of July were about seven times higher than the number of reported cases. Further,
the seasonal cycle is a consistent feature of respiratory viral infections, lending to the
widely-held prediction that the virus will exhibit some form of seasonality. This means
that advance appropriations for IHS will provide funding certainty and continuity of
services for the fall and winter months when surges in patients’ needs due to respiratory
illness and disruptions in federal funding are most probable. Simply, advance
appropriations will provide increased efficiency during times of increased need.

Advance appropriations for IHS are a simple promise: a promise that the United States
honors and upholds its treaty and trust obligations; a promise that Congress will enact
solutions that cease the generational trauma and undue and unnecessary suffering of
Native people; and a promise of certainty and security for Native communities and our
most vulnerable populations. As Congress works to restore the promises made, all
options must be on the table. Native lives cannot wait.

Sincerely,

Regina Gasco-Bentley
Tribal Chairperson

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