NM House Delegation Applauds Obama For Including Indian Health Care In Reform Proposal

U.S. Reps. Martin Heinrich (NM-01), Harry Teague (NM-02) and Ben Ray Luján (NM-03) have issued a joint statement commending President Barack Obama for including Indian health care in his health insurance reform proposal released today. Reauthorization of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act (IHCIA) was included in the health reform bills passed by both the House of Representatives and the Senate. 

The first step in Indian health care reform is reauthorizing IHCIA, which governs the Indian Health Care System (IHS) -- the provider of choice for many Native American patients. Unfortunately, IHCIA was last reauthorized in 1992, and that reauthorization expired eight years ago. The President’s proposal would reauthorize the IHCIA and will allow much-needed reforms to the Indian Health Service to move forward.

“President Obama understands how important modernizing the Indian Health Service is to Native families, and I am pleased that he has included reauthorization of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act in his health insurance proposal,” said Rep. Heinrich, who secured language to reauthorize the IHCIA in the House version of the health insurance reform bill in November 2009. “I will continue to work with congressional leaders and the president to ensure that Indian health care programs are part of any comprehensive reform package.”

“I’m encouraged that President Obama has included a reauthorization of the Indian Health Care system in his health insurance reform proposal,” said Rep. Luján. “Native Americans throughout my district have been asking for better access to quality, affordable health care, and the reauthorization of the Indian Health Care system is an important step toward this goal. As health insurance reform advances, I will continue to fight to reauthorize the Indian Health Care system.”

“It is a shame that it has taken this long to reauthorize the Indian Health Care Act,” said Rep. Teague who has supported reauthorizing the Indian Health Care Act as a stand-alone measure. “The government needs to honor the commitments it made. Securing a steady source of funding for the Indian Health Care System will mean increased access and provide better quality care for southern New Mexico’s Native American families. The House must pass a reauthorization and improvement of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act.”

This morning, the White House posted online President Obama's health insurance reform proposal in advance of Thursday’s bipartisan meeting on health reform. Click to access the full proposal.