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- By Native News Online Staff
The Office for Indian Veterans Support will be led by Captain Carmen “Skip” Clelland, a citizen of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma, the IHS announced last week.
Clelland will guide efforts that support Native veterans’ health and well-being, serve as the primary liaison among IHS, the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Tribes, Tribal organizations, and Urban Indian Organizations, and ensure that Native veterans’ needs are represented across federal systems.
Native Americans serve in the military at the highest rates of any demographic in the United States, serving at five times the national average. There are an estimated 140,000 Native veterans, 74% of whom utilize VA healthcare services.
Native veterans face significant health disparities and are twice as likely to be uninsured as their non-Native counterparts. As well, they experience higher rates of post-traumatic stress disorder and depressive disorder than white veterans.
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