{"id":451253,"date":"2017-10-26T19:22:35","date_gmt":"2017-10-27T01:22:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/?p=451253"},"modified":"2017-10-27T12:01:23","modified_gmt":"2017-10-27T18:01:23","slug":"to-build-healthier-communities-some-tribes-look-away-from-ihs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/2017\/10\/to-build-healthier-communities-some-tribes-look-away-from-ihs\/","title":{"rendered":"To build healthier communities, some tribes look away from IHS"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Melissa

Ed Williams \/ KUNM\/Public Health New Mexico<\/p>

Melissa Martinez at Sacred Path Recovery in Taos Pueblo.<\/p><\/div>\n

The Indian Health Service \u2014 the federal agency tasked with providing health services to Native American communities \u2014 has long been the go-to health care provider for tribes in New Mexico and across the country.<\/p>\n

But in recent years, that has started to change, and a growing number of tribes are deciding that managing their own clinics and behavioral health programs will help build healthier, more resilient communities.<\/p>\n

Allen Barlow, who runs the Kewa Health Corporation in Santo Domingo Pueblo, says for a long time, tribes didn\u2019t have much of an option when it came to health care.<\/p>\n

\u201cIHS has gotten away with being the only game in town for decades,\u201d Barlow said.<\/p>\n