Getting Health Care and Talking to Your Doctor

Minority Women's Health > American Indians/Alaska Natives > Health Topics > Getting Health Care and Talking to Your Doctor

The Indian Health Service (IHS) is a part of the Federal government that manages hospitals and clinics for American Indians/Alaska Natives. Only American Indians/Alaska Natives from federally recognized tribes can get health care in this system. The IHS provides health services to about 1.5 million American Indians/Alaska Natives who belong to more than 557 federally recognized tribes in 35 states.

American Indians/Alaska Natives who are not from one of these tribes, don't have proof of descendency, don't live near the IHS centers, or don't use the system can get their care through Medicare, Medicaid, Veterans Administration health care, public health systems, or their own sources of care.

Related Information: How to talk to your doctor or nurse

Most IHS centers are on or near reservations, even though most American Indians/Alaska Natives live in urban areas. In response to the need for more centers in urban areas, the IHS funds 34 urban health programs. The services of these urban health programs vary.

Publications

1.   American Indian and Alaska Native Women's Health - This site provides information for Indian health service providers and consumers about American Indian and Alaska Native women's health. It discusses access to care, violence against Native women, cancer, diabetes, HIV/AIDS, substance abuse, cardiovascular disease, and other health issues.

   http://www.ihs.gov/MedicalPrograms/MCH/W/index.cfm

2.   American Indian Health - This web site is an information portal for and about the health of native peoples of the United States.

   http://americanindianhealth.nlm.nih.gov/

3.   BPHC Service Delivery Sites: Providing Primary Care to Underserved Populations - This internet site allows users to search a database of health centers offering low-cost health services to underserved populations. Users can search by location and type of service needed.

   http://www.ask.hrsa.gov/pc/

4.   Health Care Away From Home Reservation - This publication outlines the types of services that are provided by the Indian Health Service: (1) direct health care services, which are provided by an IHS facility, or (2) contract health services (CHS), which are provided by a non-IHS facility or provider through contracts with the IHS.

   http://www.ihs.gov/generalweb/helpcenter/customerservices/chsda.asp

5.   Improving Health Care Quality: A Guide for Patients and Families - This research-based guide provides information that consumers need when making decisions about health plans, doctors, treatments, hospitals, and long-term care.

   http://www.ahrq.gov/consumer/qntlite/

6.   Insure Kids Now! - Insure Kids Now! is a national campaign that links the nation's 10 million uninsured children, from birth to age 18, to free and low-cost health insurance.

   http://www.insurekidsnow.gov/

7.   WISEWOMAN: Improving the Health of Uninsured Women - At a Glance 2003 - The WISEWOMAN Program provides the opportunity for underserved women to be assessed for cardiovascular disease risk factors and receive support for making needed changes in their diets, physical activity, and smoking behaviors. This publication reviews the risk factors facing women targeted by WISEWOMAN and summarizes the leadership provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in order to promote healthier lifestyles for high-risk women.

   http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/aag/aag_wisewoman.htm

Organizations

1.   Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, OPHS, HHS
2.   CDC's WISEWOMAN™ - Well Integrated Screening and Evaluation for Women Across the Nation
3.   Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, HHS
4.   Indian Health Services
5.   National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program, NCCDPHP, CDC
6.   Office of Minority Health Resource Center (OMHRC), OMH, OPHS, OS, HHS
7. American Hospital Association
8. National Indian Women's Health Resource Center (NIWHRC)

= Indicates Federal Resources

Current as of December 2007