Senator Mike Rounds, US Senator for South Dakota | Official U.S. Senate headshot
Senator Mike Rounds, US Senator for South Dakota | Official U.S. Senate headshot
U.S. Senators Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) have introduced legislation aimed at extending the reporting deadline for Indian Health Service (IHS) patients who require emergency care outside of IHS facilities. The proposed bill, known as the IHS Emergency Claims Parity Act, seeks to extend the notification period from 72 hours to 15 days under the IHS’s Purchased and Referred Care (PRC) program.
“When IHS patients are in an emergency situation, the last thing they should be worried about is whether IHS is going to cover the cost of care at an outside facility,” stated Senator Rounds. He added that requiring patients to report within 72 hours post-emergency is unrealistic and has led to substantial medical debt within tribal communities. “This legislation would fix that.”
Senator Cortez Masto echoed these sentiments, emphasizing that tribal families should have access to emergency care without facing stringent reporting deadlines. “Our bipartisan legislation gives Tribal patients more time to report emergency care, whether they received health care services at an IHS facility or not,” she said.
Clyde Estes, Chairman of the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe, expressed support for the legislation: “I support the IHSECPA legislation to extend the timeline for emergency reporting due to the many factors and obstacles our people face trying to navigate the current healthcare system.”
Christian Skunk, Lower Brule Sioux Tribe Councilman, highlighted the necessity of a fair reporting timeline for unexpected emergencies. Frank Star Comes Out, President of Oglala Sioux Tribe, noted that paperwork should not be a concern during a healthcare emergency and praised Senator Rounds for addressing this issue with tribal leaders.
Rosebud Sioux Tribe Treasurer Wayne Boyd also voiced his approval: “It is unrealistic for IHS to expect patients to report PRC claims when dealing with life-threatening injuries or illness.”
Currently, IHS beneficiaries must notify PRC offices within 72 hours in emergency cases unless they are elderly or disabled, in which case they have 30 days. The new act proposes extending this window to 15 days for all beneficiaries while maintaining a 30-day period for elderly or disabled patients.
The Great Plains Tribal Chairmen’s Association has endorsed this bill.
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