2021 White House Tribal Nations Summit. As a follow up to the Summit, the Domestic Policy Council created and released the Tribal Nations Summit Progress Report. See report, here.
CMS COVID-19 Vaccination Requirement. Last month, CMS issued a new emergency rule imposing COVID-19 vaccination requirements on certain 21 participating Medicare and Medicaid providers and suppliers. CMS has released a memorandum to State Survey Agency Directors announcing suspension of survey and enforcement of this vaccine requirement while there’s a court-ordered injunction in effect.
CMS Medicaid and CHIP Telehealth Supplemental Toolkit. CMS has released an updated Medicaid and CHIP telehealth toolkit that includes a supplement to the toolkit that provides states additional guidance on extending telehealth services beyond the Public Health Emergency for COVID-19.
IHS announced $46.4 million to fund behavioral health programs that serve American Indians and Alaska Natives. The funding opportunities will support addressing suicide, domestic violence, and substance abuse, and supporting an integrative approach to the delivery of behavioral health services. Major funding highlights include:
- Substance Abuse Prevention, Treatment, and Aftercare ($14 million)
- Suicide Prevention, Intervention, and Postvention ($14 million)
- Domestic Violence Prevention ($7.9 million)
- Behavioral Health Integration Initiative ($6 million)
- Forensic Healthcare ($2.5 million)
- Zero Suicide Initiative ($2 million)
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Applications are due by Feb. 2, 2022.
IHS announced $9.34 million in funding opportunities to support tribal self-governance and urban Indian health. The announcement covered the availability of the Fiscal Year 2022 Tribal Self-Governance Planning and Negotiation Cooperative Agreement funding opportunities for $840,000, which are administered by the IHS Office of Tribal Self-Governance. These annual awards support tribes and tribal organizations with the planning and preparation necessary to assume responsibility for providing health care to their tribal members through the Tribal Self-Governance Program. The application deadline for the cooperative agreement funding opportunities is Feb. 10, 2022.
Head Start Programs COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate and Universal Masking. This week the Head Start programs universal masking requirement on all individuals 2 years of age or older and COVID-19 vaccination requirement for all staff went into effect. Staff and contractors must receive their second dose in a two-dose series or first in a single-dose by Jan. 31, 2022. Certain exemptions apply to the universal masking and vaccine mandate requirements.
Office of Minority Health Center for Indigenous Innovation and Health Equity (CIIHE). Through legislation enacted in 2020, OMH was directed to develop the CIIHE to focus on health research, policy, and innovation to address health disparities among American Indian/Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander populations. OMH is seeking nominations for a delegate and an alternate from each IHS area to serve on the CIIHE Tribal Advisory Committee. Nominations are due Jan 7, 2022.
U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) and National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) Town Hall on ‘Tribal Policy Implementation and Looking Forward to 2022’. DOI and NCAI will host a Town Hall discussion and Q&A session on recent tribal policy developments from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and the announcements made during the White House Tribal Summit. The town hall will feature Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Bryan Newland and DOI staff, who will be answering questions from tribal leaders and delegates on various policy issues and implementation processes.
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Town Hall is Dec. 14, 2021 at 10:00 AM Pacific; Registration Link. Tribal Leaders or delegates interested in asking a question during the webinar should contact CC Wright at cwright@ncai.org.
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Announces additional $52 Million in Indian Community Block Grant-American Rescue Plan (ICDBG-ARP) grants. The announcement follows HUD’s awarding $72 Million of round 1 priority awards in November. The HUD resources have been awarded to Tribes in each of the 3 NW states; HUD will announce additional ICDBG-ARP awards on a rolling basis.
Office of Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian Housing, Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announces intent to establish a Tribal Intergovernmental Advisory Committee (TIAC). This notice announces HUD's intention to form the Department's first standing Tribal advisory committee and provides a pathway for American Indian and Alaska Native housing priorities to be established alongside peer learning and capacity building among Tribes and non-Tribal entities and federal agencies.
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Comments on the proposed structure of the TIAC are due on or before: Jan 14, 2022 via electronic submission through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at www.regulations.gov; refer to agency/docket number: FR-6289-N-01.
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) - Veterans Health Administration (VHA) announced invitation to Tribal leaders for two listening sessions. The listening sessions will cover the VA’s Indian Health Service/Tribal Health Program (IHS/THP) Reimbursement Agreement Program (RAP) and implementation of Public Law 116-311, Proper and Reimbursed Care for Native Veterans Act.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Veterans Health Administration (VHA) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Indian Health Service (IHS) signed a new memorandum of understanding (MOU), announced on October 21, 2021. The MOU aims to improve the health status of American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) Veterans through coordination and partnership between the VHA and IHS to leverage and share resources and investments in support of each organization’s mutual goals.
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