Weekly News, Funding, Resources, and Upcoming Events in Indian Country

July 23, 2020

NIHB Cites Federal Government's Failure to Uphold Treaty Obligations in Testimony Before US Commission on Civil Rights

On Friday, July 17, 2020, the National Indian Health Board (NIHB) Acting Chairman William Smith (Valdez Native Tribe of Alaska) testified before the US Commission on Civil Rights as part of a virtual public briefing, titled: COVID-19 in Indian Country: The Impact of Federal Broken Promises on Native Americans. In his oral remarks before the Commission, Acting Chairman Smith discussed the federal government's failure to fulfill its treaty obligations to the Tribes for healthcare and public health, made evident by chronic underfunding of Indian Health Service, paternalistic oversight over Tribal programs and reluctance to expand self-determination and self-governance policies across federal agencies. Read NIHB's written testimony here.

Congress Urged to Reauthorize Special Diabetes Program for Indians

American Indians and Alaska Natives are more likely to be diagnosed with diabetes than any other US racial group, and as the pandemic escalates in the US, individuals with diabetes are at exceptional risk of contracting the virus. The Special Diabetes Program for Indians (SDPI) has been instrumental in combating diabetes rates in Indian Country yet is set to expire in November 2020. A reauthorization bill has been introduced to extend SDPI for another five years and increase funding. Read more here.

NIHB Submits Letter Asking for Extension of COVID-19 Public Health Emergency

The National Indian Health Board (NIHB) submitted a letter to Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Alex Azar asking for an extension of the Public Health Emergency (PHE) beyond its currently scheduled end date of July 25, 2020. The letter highlights that the circumstances that necessitated the public health emergency are not only still present but have only gotten worse, with the United States reaching record highs of new cases on a near daily basis. It also highlights that a lot of the emergency powers, including waivers to Medicare and Medicaid, are conditioned on the existence of the Public Health Emergency. Read more here.

Infection Prevention & Control: Project Firstline Survey

The National Indian Health Board (NIHB) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are collaborating on an infection prevention and control (IPC) training initiative for frontline Tribal healthcare facility personnel. In order for this initiative to be as responsive to the needs of Tribal healthcare workers and the Tribal health system as possible, we are asking frontline Tribal healthcare personnel to complete this 10-minute survey on infection prevention and control training interests, needs, and preferences. Responses will be used to inform decisions on the development and delivery of training and capacity building efforts to ensure it best meets the needs of you and your colleagues. Read more here.

NIMH Suicide Prevention Research FOAs

The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Division of Services and Intervention Research intends to publish the following funding opportunity announcements (FOAs) surrounding suicide prevention research. These FOAs will be released as part of the NIMH’s initiative to reduce the rate of suicide in the US by 20% by 2025.

Funding Opportunity: Supporting Tribes to Increase Commercial Tobacco Cessation

Applications due Friday, August 28, 2020 at 11:59 PM ET

The National Indian Health Board (NIHB) is pleased to announce  Supporting Tribes to Increase Commercial Tobacco Cessation , a funding opportunity for Tribal governments, Tribal health departments, and Tribal health care facilities/health systems seeking to implement projects to increase commercial tobacco cessation, electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) cessation and ‘quit smoking’ attempts by promoting evidence-based services and activities, and/or adapting evidence-based health systems changes.  Read more here.

Call for Tribal COVID-19 Resources

The National Indian Health Board (NIHB) is seeking to create a pool of resources which Tribes can access when planning or implementing their own COVID-19 response.  To this end, NIHB is asking Tribes to share with us any tools, operational plans, guides, policies, communication products, etc. that has helped your Tribe combat this pandemic.  The materials can be de-identified, if needed. These resources will be placed online within NIHB’s COVID-19 Tribal Response Center alongside other community health materials. We hope this aids Tribes to build on successes and support each other in the collective effort to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on Indian Country. 



To submit any materials or resources, please email Courtney Wheeler ([email protected]). If you have any questions, please contact Courtney Wheeler. 

COVID-19 Resources:

COVID-19 Contact

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.

Project Firstline Infection Prevention & Control Listening Sessions

The National Indian Health Board (NIHB) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are collaborating on an infection prevention and control (IPC) training initiative for frontline Tribal healthcare facility personnel. In order for this initiative to be as responsive to the needs of Tribal healthcare workers and the Tribal health system as possible, NIHB will be holding a series national listening sessions with front line Tribal healthcare workers.

The purpose of the listening sessions is gather feedback from frontline workers and relevant stakeholders, for frontline staff to share their experience and opinions on what types of IPC trainings would be valuable, how best to host those trainings, as well other types of training materials would be useful. Input from the listening sessions will be used to inform the content and delivery of core trainings, products, and outreach. The three listening sessions will be on:



Read more here.

NIHB All-Tribes Call with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Today! Thursday, January 23, 2020 at 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM ET

The CDC utilizes many approaches to provide COVID-19 support and services. To enhance efforts to support COVID-19 response for Indian Country, the CDC, will participate in the upcoming NIHB All Tribes call. CDC is committed to supporting Indian Country in their efforts to address COVID-19 in their communities. In respecting Tribal sovereignty and self-determination, we want to hear from Tribal leaders and other Tribal stakeholders on how CDC can improve COVID-19 response efforts and assistance opportunities for you and your communities. CDC would like to take this time to hear from Tribal leaders to learn and understand the needs of Tribes and their challenges in addressing COVID-19. Read more here.

Webinar: Fire Management Assistance Grant Program and Policy Guide – Tribal Public Comment

Today! Thursday, July 23, 2020 at 1:00 PM

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is hosting a Tribal public comment webinar on Thursday, July 23, 2020 for the current draft of the 2020  Fire Management Assistance Grant Program and Policy Guide  (FMAGPPG). FEMA is accepting public comments until July 31, 2020. Use the comment matrix to provide feedback on the current 2020 FMAGPPG. Send comments to  [email protected] . Join the webinar here.

COVID-19 Event: CDC COCA Call: Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) and Diabetes: The Importance of Prevention, Management, and Support

Tuesday, July 28, 2020 at 2:00 - 3:00 PM ET

During this Clinician Outreach and Communication Activity (COCA), call presenters will discuss information on the impact and increased risk for COVID-19 complication among people with diabetes. Read more here.

NIHB Webinar: Strengthening Tribal COVID-19 Laboratory Testing Capacity

Tuesday, July 28, 2020 at 4:00 PM ET

The National Indian Health Board (NIHB) is pleased to announce the webinar "Strengthening Tribal COVID-19 Laboratory Testing Capacity".

Participants in this webinar will learn how the Public Health Accreditation Board ( PHAB) Standards and Measures can be used by Tribal public health agencies to strengthen their capacity to work with laboratories on COVID-19 and other communicable disease testing.

David Stone with PHAB will review how the framework relates to laboratory capacity. Panelists from Tribal public health departments will discuss their use of the framework and other performance improvement tools in their own COVID-19 response, and share lessons learned for improving their public health services moving forward.

Register for this webinar here.

Learn more about Tribal Public Health Accreditation and performance improvement here.

NIHB Webinar: Health Insurance Enrollment During COVID-19

Thursday, July 30, 2020 at 2:00 - 3:30 PM ET

The National Indian Health Board (NIHB) is hosting a webinar on Health Insurance Enrollment During COVID-19 on Thursday, July 30 from 2:00 - 3:30 pm Eastern Time. This webinar is for enrollment assisters, patient registration and benefits coordinators.



The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic made it critical for enrollment assisters across Indian Country to stay informed on the special protections and benefits that health insurance coverage offers to the safety of American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/ANs). The webinar is intended to help educate enrollment assisters about available health insurance coverage options, benefits and special federal protections exclusively for AI/ANs. The webinar will cover Special Enrollment Period eligibility for AI/ANs who have experienced lifetime events, such as losing a job or having a baby. Webinar participants will hear from BeWellNM and an Indian Health Service Patient Benefits Coordinator about their outreach and education strategies. Register here.