Topic: Quality of life

Indian Health Care Improvement Act deserves reauthorization

By Chris Lugo | March 1, 2008 |

This month the Senate is considering the Indian Health Care Improvement Reauthorization Bill, SB 1200. This bill, which is designed to address the health care needs of some two million residents of the United States who can claim American Indian ancestry, is an important step toward honoring the obligations that we as Americans have toward the health and welfare of Native Americans. This bill will make up-to-date amendments to the health care available to 1.9 million rural and urban indigenous people in the United States, and will restore honor to the federal government’s trust and obligation to native tribes.

Congress passed the Indian Health Care Improvement Act in 1976 to address health disparities between Native Americans and the rest of the populace. Since 1992, when the act was last reauthorized, the U.S. health care delivery system has been revolutionized, while the Indian health care system has not.

This bill lays the foundation for program change, including shifts from acute care to prevention and the provision of mental health services for children. It addresses health crises such as diabetes, youth suicide, and drug addiction that have escalated among native peoples in the past 15 years. It facilitates greater input to program operation from the local tribal level and enhances recruitment and retention of health professionals in facilities serving native populations. «Read the rest of this article»

Sections: Politics | No Comments

Lottery surplus: It’s all about HOPE

By Jimmie Garland, Sr. | December 31, 2007 |

America, a land of many opportunities, has both real and perceived problems in communication between the have’s and the have-not’s. As citizens of this great country, we must never forget the trials and tribulations our ancestors witnessed as they worked to carve out our heritage. Many worked in the fields while others were viewed as “privileged” to work in the homes of their owners.

One might believe I am only referring to the plight of the blacks. That is far from the truth. Throughout the history of the United States, there were servants of all ethnicities and both genders.

I make this statement as a prelude for my response to Leaf Chronicle editorial (12.31.07). The editorial addressed the division of funds generated by the Tennessee Lottery to fund the HOPE Scholarship program. The apparent position of the writer was that anyone who can not maintain at least a 3.0 grade point average doesn’t deserve a chance to achieve a college education. Let me remind that writer that there have been presidents of this country who had less than a 3.0 GPA, and some who had no formal education at all.

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Sections: Opinion | 8 Comments