Hearing of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee - Indian Health Service Fiscal Year 2012 Budget Hearing

Statement

Welcome, Director Roubideaux and Deputy Director Randy Grinnell.

The FY12 budget request for the Indian Health Service is a $571 million increase, or 14%, over FY10. Of that increase, $327 million, or 57%, is just to maintain current services. The rising costs of healthcare are staring this subcommittee in the face.

The U.S. has an obligation to provide quality healthcare to American Indians and Alaska Natives. And as Chairman Simpson and Mr. Moran have already demonstrated, meeting that obligation will be as high of a priority of this subcommittee in the 112th Congress as it was in the 111th.

It won't be easy. The reality is that once this subcommittee has been given its allocation, the Indian Health Service will be competing for limited funding against our nation's aging water infrastructure, the operation of our national parks, and fighting life-threatening wildfires--just to name a few.

We are pleased to have the two of you here today to continue our dialogue about how to ensure that every dollar appropriated to the IHS is money well spent.

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