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- By Native News Online Staff
The Trump administration has withdrawn an order that directed all federal agencies to temporarily halt their grants, loans, and financial assistance programs—a move that would have severely impacted healthcare services for American Indians and Alaska Natives. The order would have cut off funding to the Indian Health Service, a federal agency established to uphold the United States' treaty obligations to tribes, as well as grants supporting research and critical programs.
The Seattle Indian Health Board, a federally qualified health center, relies on federal grants to provide essential health services and programs. These include maternal and infant care, medications for opioid use disorder, and public health research, among others.
“Any action to cut off funding to Native healthcare services is not only dangerous, it’s illegal,” said Esther Lucero (Diné), president and CEO of the Seattle Indian Health Board. “While we are pleased with the administration’s decision to rescind its order, we remain cautious as we work with legislators and partners to ensure we are able to provide all the necessary services to our community.”
“Indigenous mothers and babies experience the highest rates of mortality during pregnancy and birth due to the lack of access to culturally attuned care, which we provide through federal grants,” Lucero added. “Native people experience the highest rates of substance use disorder and overdose deaths throughout Seattle and the country, yet funding for the services we provide to battle addiction are being threatened.”
Seattle Indian Health Board also operates the Urban Indian Health Institute, a Tribal Epidemiology Center dedicated to providing public health data on urban Native populations, who make up 76% of the total Native community.
“Our community and policymakers rely on our resources to make data-driven decisions on programing and policy to improve the health of our communities,” said Abigail Echo-Hawk (Pawnee), executive vice president of the Seattle Indian Health Board and director of the Urban Indian Health Institute. “These are all essential services that have nothing to do with the DEI programs the Trump administration is seeking to end. Access to data is a treaty-protected right that is upheld in federal law, along with the resources needed to ensure quality, physician-led healthcare. Any further action to halt federal grants is extremely dangerous to Native communities and a misguided assault on programs designed to uphold treaty and trust responsibilities.”
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