Covering Indian Country – December 2024

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services: Covering Indian Country

December 2024

Gift with a bow and a stethoscope with a red Santa hat. Text reads, "Deadline to enroll in Marketplace coverage: January 15. Give the gift of health care. 4 out of 5 customers can find a plan for $10 or less. HealthCare.gov."

Spotlight: Prioritizing our health

For many American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/ANs), the holiday season is a time to celebrate, express gratitude, and exchange gifts with loved ones near and far.

The week of December 22 has been designated “Give the Gift of Health Care Week.” As that week approaches, the CMS Division of Tribal Affairs (DTA) would like to remind everyone that prioritizing our health is the best gift we can give to ourselves and our families.

That’s why DTA encourages AI/AN families to:

  • Make sure all household members have health care coverage through Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program, Marketplace, or Medicare
  • Visit HealthCare.gov, where they can learn about their coverage options and apply for a Marketplace plan during the current open enrollment period

Prioritizing our health is the best gift we can give to ourselves and our families.

All Marketplace plans cover preventive care, office visits, emergency care, prescription drugs, and more. And for the fourth year in a row, four out of five consumers who visit HealthCare.gov during open enrollment can find health care coverage for $10 or less per month with financial help.

Enrollment assisters should remind everyone of the following open enrollment deadlines:

  • Enroll by December 15, 2024: Get full-year Marketplace coverage that starts January 1, 2025
  • Enroll by January 15, 2025: Get Marketplace coverage that starts February 1, 2025

For relevant talking points and key messages, download the Marketplace Open Enrollment Theme Week Toolkit (PDF, 252 KB, 3 pp), which includes resources from CMS’s most recent Tribal Week of Action to encourage AI/ANs to sign up for a Marketplace plan during open enrollment.

Also, register for the January 8 Health Insurance Marketplace Open Enrollment Period Partner Webinar to access information and resources intended to help consumers navigate open enrollment. Check the calendar of events at the end of this newsletter for additional details.

December: Flu and COVID-19 shots

Adult holding a baby at a meal with two youth and a toddler. Message reads, "Got holiday gatherings planned? Make sure everyone in your household gets this season's flu and COVID-19 shots."

Share this ad in your newsletter or on your website. For more information, please visit CMS’s Outreach and Education Resources page.

Public service announcements

Share these brief audio clips and videos, available in certain Native languages and English, on your local radio station, website, and Facebook page.

SoundcloudAudio clips



YoutubeVideos

New 2023 twitter logo x icon designPost it

Stay healthy for the holidays! Make sure you get this season’s flu and COVID-19 shots.

https://youtu.be/oH9BythlDqY

#CMSNativeHealth

CMS tribal products

A collage of three resources: (1) "Third Party at Work" poster (2) Three pages from the technical assistance document, Health Coverage Options for American Indians and Alaska Natives, and (3) the CMS Programs at a Glance brochure

Access these tribal-specific resources anytime:

 

Additional resources

COVID and flu vaccination campaign

Flyer features a multigenerational group of Native people. Message encourages people to stay up to date on their COVID-19 and flu vaccines. The flyer also features the following quote from a talking circle participant: "We are all connected in one way or another."

To help keep families and communities healthy, share a culturally tailored COVID-19 and flu vaccination campaign toolkit.

Created by the International Association for Indigenous Aging (IA2), the toolkit includes posters, flyers, sample social media posts, and more.

Also, check out IA2’s collection of videos, in which Native people explain why COVID-19 and flu vaccination matters to them.

COVID-19 and flu vaccinations are covered by the Marketplace, Medicare, Medicaid, and the Children’s Health Insurance Program.

Improving the health of infants and toddlers

The 2024 Tribal Prenatal-to-Three Policy Agenda (PDF, 6.7 MB, 28 pp) outlines recommendations and strategies to help improve health outcomes for American Indian and Alaska Native infants and toddlers.

Released recently by the National Indian Health Board, the document focuses on five policy goals:

  1. Protect tribal sovereignty and determination
  2. Invest equitable resources and funding
  3. Address trauma and strengthen connection to culture
  4. Support family-centered systems
  5. Empower tribal voice in state and federal governance

The document also highlights the need to consider Indigenous-specific drivers of health when identifying and addressing challenges that impact Native families’ wellbeing.

Call for NICWA award nominations

Logo for the National Indian Child Welfare Association

Submit nominations by January 8, 2025, for the Champion for Native Children Awards, which recognize outstanding contributions to the health and welfare of Indigenous children, families, and communities in the United States or Canada.

  • One award will honor an individual
  • The other will recognize a tribe or organization

Awardees will be honored April 1, 2025, at the National Indian Child Welfare Association’s (NICWA) 43rd annual Protecting Our Children Conference in Orlando, Florida.

Funding opportunities

NBCC Foundation rural scholarships

Deadline: December 31, 2024
View the NBCC Foundation funding opportunity

The National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC) Foundation is offering scholarships to students enrolled in master’s-level counseling programs.

  • Five scholarships of $8,000 each will be awarded
  • Applicants must live in a rural area and commit to serving a rural population for at least two years after graduation
Logos for National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC) and NBCC Foundation

Patrick Leahy Farm to School grants

Deadline: January 10, 2025

The Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant Program provides funding to increase the availability of local foods in schools and connect students to their food sources through field trips, gardening, and more.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture expects to award:

  • 75 Implementation Grants of up to $500,000 each for comprehensive programs that incorporate both local sourcing and agricultural education efforts
  • 60 Turnkey Grants of up to $50,000 each for projects focused on action planning, agricultural education, or edible gardens

Native American Research Internship

Deadline: January 31, 2025, at 11:59 p.m. Mountain
View the Native American Research Internship funding opportunity

American Indian and Alaska Native undergraduate juniors and seniors interested in health science research are encouraged to apply for a paid summer internship at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City.

Funded by the National Institutes of Health, the 10-week internship provides opportunities to:

  • Meet formally and informally with a cultural mentor
  • Shadow physicians at clinical sites
  • Participate in academic and professional development

Calendar of events

Native Wellness Institute logo

Healthy Relationships Training

December 17–18, 2024
12–7 p.m. Eastern
Virtual

Register for the Healthy Relationships Training

The Native Wellness Institute invites behavioral health and social service staff to attend a two-day training course on healthy relationships. Topics include gender expansiveness and conflict resolution.

2025 Health Insurance Marketplace Open Enrollment Period Partner Webinar

January 8, 2025
3 p.m. Eastern
Register for the January 8 Marketplace Open Enrollment Period Partner Webinar

CMS invites enrollment assisters to attend an upcoming webinar for crucial information and resources to help consumers navigate the Health Insurance Marketplace open enrollment period that ends January 15, 2025. Educational materials and toolkits to help consumers enroll in Marketplace health care coverage are available on CMS’s Partner Tools & Toolkits web page.

Tele-behavioral health webinars

Sponsored by the Indian Health Service Tele-Behavioral Health Center of Excellence (TBHCE), these tele-education webinars are intended for health care team members.

Behavioral health integration webinar series, 12 p.m. Eastern

  • January 30, 2025 – Developing Patients’ Trust in Managing Opioid Use Disorder in Integrated Care Settings
  • February 13, 2025 – Comprehensive Case Management in an Integrated Care Setting
  • February 20, 2025 – Peer Support, Community Health Workers, and Cultural Healers as Integrated Care Ambassadors

UNITY’s 2025 Midyear Conference

Logo for United National Indian Tribal Youth, Inc.

February 7–9, 2025
Phoenix, Arizona

Register for UNITY’s 2025 Midyear Conference

United National Indian Tribal Youth, Inc. (UNITY) will host its Midyear Conference, highlighting community service and advocacy for Indigenous communities. Discounted registration is available through January 7, 2025.

International Meeting on Indigenous Child Health

March 28–30, 2025
Winnipeg, Manitoba

Register for the International Meeting on Indigenous Child Health

The International Meeting on Indigenous Child Health explores programs and strategies to promote the wellbeing of Indigenous children and youth worldwide. Early bird registration runs through February 26, 2025.

Banner for 11th International Meeting on Indigenous Child Health

Protecting Our Children Conference

March 30–April 2, 2025
Orlando, Florida, with the option to attend virtually

Register for the Protecting Our Children Conference

The 43rd annual Protecting Our Children Conference is themed “Honoring the Sacred.” Sponsored by the National Indian Child Welfare Association, the conference is geared toward social service providers, legal professionals, children’s advocates, tribal leaders, and federal program staff.

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Do you have news to share? Send it to coveringic@kauffmaninc.com for possible inclusion in an upcoming newsletter. Contact us with other comments or feedback, too.

About the newsletter

Covering Indian Country is published by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Division of Tribal Affairs to share resources, success stories, and best practices with the people who connect tribal communities to health care coverage.


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