The health clinic in Polson, Montana. Photo from Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes
Sharlene Peone, a member of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes in Montana, is fighting the Indian Health Service over an emergency room bill:
I hear many, many horror stories how the Tribal Health keeps turning down medical care for those who are eligible; such denials are for surgeries, procedures and doctor referrals. The United States Treaty states “all members of the Salish Kootenai and Pend d’Oreille tribes that reside within the interior boundaries of the reservation shall receive free medical care.” So why is the treaty being broken? And you may want to ask yourself, by whose authority? Is it our very own Tribal Health representatives? For years the Tribal Health has been at an operating emergency level of: only if you are about to lose your life or a limb. That is what they have in place for our coverage.Get the Story:
Sharlene Peone: No more ‘life or limb’ criteria (The Ronan Valley Journal 12/2)
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