Indian Health Service NEWS RELEASE	IHS-15-2002 August 17, 2002 FOR IMMEDIATE  RELEASE
Contact: (301) 443-3593, FAX (301) 443-0507
Roundtable Report Released on Key Issues of Long-Term Care for American Indian and Alaska Native Elders

     The Indian Health Service (IHS), an agency in the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), in partnership with the Administration on Aging (AoA) and the National Indian Council on Aging (NICOA), has issued a report on long-term care for American Indian and Alaska Native elders. The report, American Indian and Alaska Native Roundtable on Long-Term Care: Final Report 2002, summarizes the discussions and consensus positions developed during a recent Roundtable Conference in April on American Indian and Alaska Native Long-Term Care.
     "The American Indian and Alaska Native elder population brings special challenges for the Indian health care system. Our goal is to help elders remain in their communities with their family for as long as possible," stated Dr. Charles W. Grim, IHS Interim Director. "Long-term care is a quality of life issue for the elderly, their families, and their communities."
     The report contains papers on Indian demographics from the 2000 Census, the latest data on the prevalence of functional impairment among Indian elders, a report on Indian nursing homes, and a preliminary analysis of the cost of long-term care for Indian elders using recent IHS user population data.
     "There are many choices available for elders and persons with disabilities. Elders tell us that they want to stay at home. We are committed to working with the Tribes, the Indian Health Service, and other agencies within HHS to expand opportunities for elders to remain in their homes and communities," stated Assistant Secretary for Aging Josefina G. Carbonell.
     The IHS Director's Initiatives on Elder Health has focused efforts on infrastructure development for long-term care service delivery for Indian elders, the development of improved clinical expertise in clinical geriatric care, and improved palliative and end-of-life care.
     "We are working with tribes to focus attention on the support of frail elders and their families. The work of the Roundtable participants has been very helpful to us in guiding our efforts. These include working with local service units to refocus existing IHS resources toward long-term care needs, providing technical assistance and capacity building efforts to support the development of tribally based systems of long-term care, and enhanced coordination with other federal agencies to improve access to existing and new resources," stated Bruce Finke, M.D., National Coordinator for Elder Care Initiative, IHS Zuni Service Unit, Zuni, NM.
     This conference provided a forum for the analysis of key issues in the development of American Indian and Alaska Native long-term care. This publication is a report of the process and a summary of the implications and recommendations from the Roundtable experts regarding five specific topic areas: (1) Long-Term Care in Indian Country Today: A Snapshot; (2) Opportunities for Medicaid Financing of Long-Term Care in American Indian and Alaska Native Communities; (3) Long-Term Care in Indian Country: Important Considerations in Developing LTC Services; (4) How Do We Understand and Incorporate Elders' Teachings and Tribal Values in Planning a Long-Term Care System?; and (5) How Do We Address the Long-Term Care Needs of Urban Indian Elders?
     The IHS is also co-leading a working group within HHS whose goal is to coordinate federal resources to assist tribes as they develop long-term care services and systems. Participating with the IHS are the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Administration for Native Americans, and AoA.
     An electronic copy (in Adobe .pdf format) of the full report is available by clicking here. For smaller downloads select Part I, or Part II, or Part III. Information about IHS Elder Programs is available at http://www.ihs.gov/MedicalPrograms/ElderCare. A hard copy of the report is available upon request from the IHS Office of Public Health, Division of Behavioral Health, 12300 Twinbrook Parkway, Suite 605, Rockville, MD 20852, (301) 443-2038.

NOTICE TO EDITORS: For additional information on this subject, please contact the IHS
Public Affairs Office at 301-443-3593. Additional information about the IHS is available on the IHS website http://www.ihs.gov and http://info.ihs.gov
Information on AoA is at website http://www.aoa.gov/ Information on NICOA is at website http://nicoa.org/