Independent news from the Indigenous Media Freedom Alliance
November 24, 2024
News Media Collaborative

Agreement boosts access for American Indian vets

Jodi Rave Spotted Bear
by
jodi@imfreedomalliance.org https://twitter.com/JodiRave
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JT Shining Oneside shared stories about her Ojibwe and Anishinaabe inheritance during the Native American Heritage Month Celebration on Nov. 15. She spoke about the coming-of-age and traditional birth ceremonies. (Photo credit/ Adrianna Adame)

WASHINGTON (AP) – Native American military veterans will be able to access health care closer to home thanks to an agreement between the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs and the Indian Health Service.

The agreement allows for Veterans Affairs to reimburse IHS for direct health care services provided to eligible American Indian and Alaska Native veterans.

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius first announced plans for the new partnership during Wednesday’s tribal summit.

Veterans Affairs and IHS released more details Thursday, saying the agreement stemmed from much work among the agencies and tribal governments as they tried to find a more equitable solution for bolstering access to care for veterans, particularly those in rural areas.

Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki says the VA is committed to expanding access to Native veterans “with the full range of VA programs, as earned by their service to our nation.

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Posted in News Media Collaborative
Jodi Rave Spotted Bear
jodi@imfreedomalliance.org https://twitter.com/JodiRave

Jodi Rave Spotted Bear is the founder and director of the Indigenous Media Freedom Alliance, a 501-C-3 nonprofit organization with offices in Bismarck, N.D. and the Fort Berthold Reservation. Jodi spent 15 years reporting for the mainstream press. She's been awarded prestigious Nieman and John S. Knight journalism fellowships at Harvard and Stanford, respectively. She also an MIT Knight Science Journalism Project fellow. Her writing is featured in "The Authentic Voice: The Best Reporting on Race and Ethnicity," published by Columbia University Press. Jodi currently serves as a Society of Professional Journalists at-large board member, an SPJ Foundation board member, and she chairs the SPJ Freedom of Information Committee. Jodi has won top journalism awards from mainstream and Native press organizations. She earned her journalism degree from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

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