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HOUSE JOINT MEMORIAL 15
48
TH LEGISLATURE
- STATE OF NEW MEXICO -
FIRST SESSION
, 2007
INTRODUCED BY
Nick L. Salazar
A JOINT MEMORIAL
ENDORSING THE REAUTHORIZATION OF THE FEDERAL INDIAN HEALTH CARE
IMPROVEMENT ACT.
WHEREAS, the federal Indian Health Care Improvement Act
was enacted by congress in 1976 but expired in 2000 and has not
yet been reauthorized; and
WHEREAS, Native Americans in New Mexico and across the
nation experience the highest rates of cancer, obesity,
diabetes and heart disease, yet are adversely affected by
limited access to health care due to chronic underfunding of
the Indian health service; and
WHEREAS, the federal government, through treaties entered
into with tribal entities, has the primary responsibility for
providing health care to the Native American population in New
Mexico and the United States; and
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WHEREAS, disparities in the health care provided to Native
Americans have been documented many times, including in the
July 2003 report of the United States commission on civil
rights, entitled "A Quiet Crisis: Federal Funding and Unmet
Needs in Indian Country" and the September 2004 report of the
United States commission on civil rights, entitled "Broken
Promises: Evaluating the Native American Health Care System";
and
WHEREAS, New Mexico and other states cannot bear sole
fiscal responsibility for providing adequate health care to
their Native American populations; and
WHEREAS, the reauthorization of the Indian Health Care
Improvement Act would provide fiscal and other assistance
necessary to improve the health care provided to Native
Americans; and
WHEREAS, reauthorization of the Indian Health Care
Improvement Act through fiscal year 2015 could have been
accomplished by congress through the passage of S. 1057, the
Indian Health Care Improvement Act Amendments of 2005 that was
introduced on May 17, 2005; and
WHEREAS, a substitute for S. 1057 was reported favorably
out of the senate committee on Indian affairs on March 16, 2006
but no further senate action was taken on that bill; and
WHEREAS, reauthorization of the Indian Health Care
Improvement Act through fiscal year 2015 could have been
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accomplished by congress through the passage of H.R. 5312, the
Indian Health Care Improvement Act Amendments of 2006 that was
introduced on May 9, 2005; and
WHEREAS, a substitute for H.R. 5312 was reported favorably
out of the house committee on resources on June 21, 2006 but no
further house action was taken on that bill;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE
STATE OF NEW MEXICO that it urge congress and the president of
the United States to prioritize the reauthorization of the
Indian Health Care Improvement Act early in the first session
of the one hundred tenth congress; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that it support the addition of the
city of Albuquerque to the list of demonstration projects in
order to support vital health care services serving urban
Native Americans; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that it support language in a
reauthorization of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act to
encourage state-Indian health service partnerships to provide
eligibility to workers in rural areas; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that it support providing access to
residential treatment centers for Native American youth and
adolescents close to their homes on reservations in light of
the alarming rates of substance abuse and suicide within this
population in New Mexico; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be
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transmitted to the president of the United States; the
secretary of the United States department of the interior; the
president of the Navajo Nation; the speaker of the Navajo
Nation council; the president of the Mescalero Apache Tribe;
the president of the Jicarilla Apache Nation; the governors of
the nineteen Indian pueblos in New Mexico; the members of the
New Mexico congressional delegation; the governor; the
secretary of health; and the secretary of Indian affairs.
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