In anticipation of the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) independent advisory committee meeting on October 26 and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) independent advisory committee meeting on November 2-3, the Biden Administration is announcing a plan to ensure that, if a vaccine is authorized for children ages 5-11, it is quickly distributed and made conveniently and equitably available to families across the country. The start of a vaccination program for children ages 5-11 will depend on the independent FDA and CDC process and timeline, but planning efforts are in process so that the Administration will be ready to begin getting shots in arms in the days following a final CDC recommendation. These steps will be critical in ensuring that Tribal Nations are staying ahead of the virus by keeping kids and families safe, especially those at highest risk. Read more.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is announcing an upcoming meeting of its Antimicrobial Drugs Advisory Committee (AMDAC) to discuss Merck and Ridgeback’s request for an emergency use authorization (EUA) for molnupiravir, an investigational antiviral drug to treat COVID-19. On Nov. 30, the advisory committee will meet to discuss the available data supporting the use of molnupiravir to treat mild-to-moderate coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in adults who have tested positive for COVID-19, and who are at high risk for progression to severe COVID-19, including hospitalization or death. The FDA will also present its perspective regarding the sponsor’s data. There will be an open public hearing during which the public will be given an opportunity to provide comments. Learn more.

October 17–23 is International Infection Prevention Week, which aims to shine a light on infection prevention. This year’s theme is “Make Your Intention Infection Prevention.”

Looking to brush up on your infection control knowledge this International Infection Prevention Week? Check out National Indian Health Board’s Project Firstline’s resources HERE and Centers for Disease Control Project Firstline resources HERE. 

The Navajo Nation Tribal Council has enacted the “Air is Life Act of 2021,” which requires all Tribal facilities on Navajo Nation territory, including gaming facilities, to operate smoke-free, meaning commercial tobacco products cannot be used indoors. Commercial tobacco smoke has been linked to several adverse health outcomes, such as lung cancer, heart disease, and respiratory conditions. The passage of this legislation follows monthslong organizing and advocacy work from the Air is Life Coalition. Navajo Nation President Nez has ten days after passage of the legislation to sign it into law. View the Council meeting here. 

The National Indian Health Board (NIHB), through support from the Alzheimer’s Association, is pleased to announce that 5 Tribes have been offered funding at $15,000 each through a Brain Health mini grant called "Supporting Tribal Partnerships for Implementing the Road Map for Indian Country Strategies." The Tribal recipients have created individualized work plans and will form partnerships with other programs in their communities to address Alzheimer’s Disease and related dementias.

Learn more about NIHB’s efforts in raising awareness of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias and the Road Map for Indian Country HERE.

NIHB is seeking input from Tribal partners and subject matter experts to improve the second Public Health in Indian Country Capacity Scan (PHICCS II ), slated for early 2022. The purpose of PHICCS is to periodically assess the capacity of Tribal health and Tribal public health organizations for delivering public health services. The COVID-19 pandemic has focused national attention on U.S. public health capacity and infrastructure. Your guidance is essential to ensure PHICCS II captures current Tribally-driven infrastructure needs and priorities.

Provide feedback on the PHICCS I tool, including emergent topics and strategies to increase ease-of-use. Your comments will help us revise and improve the PHICCS II tool. Provide Comments on the tool here.

Recommend how NIHB can best include Tribal voices and ensure PHICCS is relevant to Tribal public health infrastructure efforts. Your comments will help us improve PHICCS II outreach efforts. Provide Comments on the Process here.

Learn more about PHICCS, including the PHICCS 2019 Report, Frequently Asked Questions and the PHICCS II timeline here.

Contact Nina Martin, [email protected], or 202-548-7299 for more information.

The National Indian Health Board (NIHB) invites hospital food services, restaurant facilities, daycares, and school cafeteria staff to participate in a brief survey. The purpose of this survey is to connect with Tribal environmental health departments and foodservice facility operators to identify current strategies, policies, and procedures being implemented by Tribal health departments to ensure safe reopening and continued operations for Tribal food facilities. The survey will take you less than 10 minutes to complete.

To access the survey, click here.

All personal information that you provide will be kept secure and not shared. NIHB will only report results in the aggregate with no identifying information attached. Please complete the survey by October 27, 2021. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact Audrianna Marzette by email at [email protected].

The Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board (NPAIHB) ECHO is working with PRIME Education to develop a webinar series on Influenza. To best understand the information NPAIHB should share, NPAIHB is conducting a small research study: Influenza Diagnosis and Treatment: Tailored Provider Education to Address the Needs of American Indian and Alaska Native Communities. The survey will take approximately 5 – 10 minutes to complete. The survey is intended to obtain your viewpoint about the healthcare experiences of your patients with influenza. Physicians, nurses, NPs, PAs, PharmDs, patient navigators as well as community health aids are welcomed to complete the survey. At the end of the survey, you will be able to claim an Amazon e-gift card by entering your email address. To participate, please click here.

You can read more, including the NOFO and access webinar recordings and slides here.

The National Indian Health Board (NIHB) is seeking qualified candidates for the following open positions in the Public Health Policy and Programs Department based in Washington, DC.

Job descriptions are available here.

As emergency managers know, exercises are a great way to validate a community’s preparedness for all-hazard events. But in today’s world, they sometimes find themselves without adequate time, resources, or funds to do so. Luckily, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is accepting requests for exercise support through the National Exercise Program. The National Exercise Program is a two-year cycle of exercises in which Tribes and Tribal organizations can request no-cost assistance for exercise design, development, conduct and evaluation to validate capabilities across all mission areas.

Fall 2021 requests for support are due Monday, November 1, 2021.

To submit a request for exercise support, complete the nomination form, then email the completed form with any supporting documentation to [email protected]. Awardees will be notified by December 10, 2021. FEMA will hold additional exercise support rounds in the spring and fall of 2022.

Indian Country ECHO: CHAP Learning Collaborative

The Community Health Aid Program (CHAP) ECHO Learning Collaborative is designed to bridge the gap between traditional practices and modern standards of care through bringing together several types of practitioners, including Dental Health Aide Therapists (DHATs), Behavioral Health Aides and Practitioners (BHA/Ps), and Community Health Aides and Practitioners (CHA/Ps). Sessions are open to all, but advanced registration is recommended. Sign up and view past sessions here!

National Indian Health Board (NIHB) is offering technical assistance to support Tribal injury surveillance and prevention efforts. Topics include but are not limited to analyzing state policies that may impact data sharing or establishing data sharing partnership agreements.

For questions and more information, contact Nina Martin ([email protected], 202-548-7299).

The American Medical Association (AMA) is one of many partners in the Project Firstline infection prevention and control learning collaborative. AMA’s new video “How to Protect Yourself from Counterfeit N95 Respirators” shows learners how to identify and select NIOSH-approved N-95 respirators vs. counterfeit N-95 respirators. It is important for Tribal healthcare organizations to be cautious of inadequate and counterfeit respirators on the market, especially when they are in high demand. Tribal frontline healthcare workers interested in learning more about how to identify counterfeit N-95 respirators may watch AMA’s new video HERE. Want to learn more? Make sure to check out additional information on ways to ensure your N-95 respirators aren’t counterfeit HERE

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) COVID-19 Community Corps Team has developed the NEW Boosters resource page that includes guides, infographics, and social media posts to share them online them for your communities. Read more.

COVID-19 vaccination (initial doses and boosters) and preventive measures for COVID-19 are important, especially if you are older or have multiple or severe health conditions. Read more.

The National Indian Health Board is committed to serving Tribal Nations in response to the coronavirus outbreak. We welcome your requests and feedback. Contact Courtney Wheeler at [email protected] or 202-507-4081.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has a great tool to help you make decisions on when to seek testing and medical care. Tribal members who are 13 and older, and parents and caregivers of children ages 2 to 12 can use the tool to help decide when to seek testing or medical care if they suspect they or someone they know has contracted COVID-19 or has come into close contact with someone who has COVID-19. Tribal members can use the on-line tool to find recommended actions and resources based on their response to questions in the Self-checker tool. 

Today! Thursday October 21,2021 at 2:00 PM ET

Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board’s Indian Country ECHO is a free service for clinicians and health programs serving American Indian and Alaska Native people. Indian Country ECHO is launching a new Infectious Disease ECHO which will be held on the third Thursday of the month from 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm MT beginning October 21, 2021. The ECHO virtual clinics will provide an opportunity to be updated on the latest emerging infectious disease topics, engage in challenging case discussions, participate in a didactic session, and join a learning community to effectively screen, treat, and manage patients with infectious diseases. CE will be provided. Learn more here.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is hosting a call on Tuesday, October 26, 2021, to provide updates about the latest recommendations and clinical considerations for administering COVID-19 boosters, including an update on early safety monitoring for additional COVID-19 vaccine doses.

A few minutes before the webinar begins, click this link to join.

Wednesday, October 27th, 2021, at 3:00pm ET

The National Indian Health Board is hosting an Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) webinar on Wednesday, October 27^th, 2021 at 3:00pm EST. This webinar will be focused on Indigenous led research and the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Peoples (MMIP) crisis. Guest speaker, Ariel Richer, LMSW (pictured), CEO of the Urban Indigenous Collective (UIC), will provide information on how UIC enacts Indigenous research methods and will discuss the MMIWGT2S NYC+ project year 1 along with its next steps. This webinar is recommended for behavioral health professionals, public health professionals, education staff and anyone who works with AI/AN communities around IPV. To register, please click here.

For more information contact Chyna Locklear at [email protected]

Wednesday, October 27, 2021, at 12:00pm ET

Harvard’s Department of Global Health and Social Medicine, and the Harvard University Native American Program (HUNAP), are hosting a colloquium featuring Yvette Roubideaux who will be speaking about the role of research and data in the advancement of American Indian and Alaska Native health policy. This colloquium is being held via Zoom on Wednesday, October 27, 2021, at 12:00pm ET. To join the colloquium, click here.

Save the date for their next virtual colloquium with Dr. Melissa Walls, who will be speaking about Indigenous Health and Well-being, on December 1, 2021.

The National Indian Health Board (NIHB), is hosting the first event in the COVID-19 Ask Me Anything (AMA) Series. American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/ANs) across the country are getting a COVID vaccine for various reasons -- going back to school, playing sports, and protecting their family and communities. Native youth and parents, young people, and Tribal community members are invited to join the AMA to ask any questions they might have about COVID-19 vaccines or booster shots to an expert from the CDC.

This AMA is focused on knowledge sharing and helping Tribal communities dispel any myths about COVID-19 vaccines and booster shots. Submit questions ahead of time with this form so presenter(s) have time to review them. Please come prepared to ask questions or share your own insights and experiences.

For questions, please contact Darby Galligher at [email protected]

The Center for Disaster Philanthropy is partnering with We are Warriors Emergency Operations Center and Great Plains Tribal Leaders Health Board to host a virtual Recovery & Healing Conference on Nov. 10, 2021, 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. MT. The conference will help Tribal leaders, nonprofit organizations, emergency managers, community leaders, disaster responders and funders understand:

Friday, November 19, 2021, from 11:00am-6:00pm ET

The National Indian Health Board (NIHB) is excited to announce the 2021 Don't Miss Your Shot: COVID-19 Youth Summit. The Youth Summit will be virtually held on Friday, November 19, 2021.