IHS to force urban Indians to travel for prescriptions

Friday, February 16, 2007  

Starting March 1, urban Indians in Billings, Montana, will have to go to the Crow Reservation to obtain their prescription drugs.

For years, the Indian Health Board of Billings has been filling prescriptions for tribal members who can't make it to the reservation. The clinic transports the drugs from the Crow-Northern Cheyenne Hospital to its facility.

But due to concerns over funding and liability, the Indian Health Service is stopping the practice. "It is pure and simple discrimination," Marjorie Bear Don't Walk, the executive director of the clinic, told The Billings Gazette.

Don't Walk says it is difficult for some urban Indians to get to the reservation. The change in policy will hurt elderly tribal members, those lacking transportation or financial means, or those unable to take time off from work, she said.

Get the Story:
Indian agency to quit taking drugs to Billings (The Billings Gazette 2/16)

$rl Indian Health Service - http://www.ihs.gov
National Indian Health Board - http://www.nihb.org

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