IHS Awards Nearly $1.2 Million Addressing Alzheimer’s Disease during World Alzheimer’s Month

The Indian Health Service is announcing the award of an additional $1.19 million through six cooperative agreements to enhance tribal and urban Indian health system local capacity to provide dementia care and services. The total commitment for the new three-year awards is nearly $3.6 million. This new round of funding builds on early work and lessons learned from awards offered in 2022and 2023, with an eye for creating sustainable and replicable models of dementia care.

“Alzheimer’s can deprive people of their precious memories, thoughts, and identity. It’s often painful for the patients and everyone who lovingly care for them,” said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. “The steps we are taking today will enhance care quality and expand support for American Indians and Alaska Natives living with Alzheimer’s disease and dementias.”

These awards will advance the HHS’ work to fulfill the National Plan to Address Alzheimer’s Disease by enhancing care quality and efficiency, expanding support for people with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias and their families, and enhancing public awareness and engagement.

“There continues to be a great need for access to more timely and accurate diagnosis, as well as culturally appropriate education and management of care for people living with dementia, as regrettably, many American Indians and Alaska Natives suffer from cognitive decline,” said IHS Director Roselyn Tso. “Clinicians at IHS, tribal, and urban Indian health facilities are using these funds to identify and build new and improved approaches to care. This new round of funding will bring additional much-needed resources to local communities, people living with dementia, their caregivers, and families."

The 2024 awardees include two brand-new recipients and four awardees who received previous two-year funding. The 2024 awardees include:

• Indian Health Board (IHB) of Minneapolis Inc. (Minnesota) – $200,000 –IHB will shift focus with this award to improving access to earlier diagnosis of dementia and connection to support earlier in the disease process. It anticipates improvements in the quality of health and general well-being of patients who receive interdisciplinary assessment and care planning, as well as similar positive impacts on the health of caregivers who participate in their caregiver support programming.
• Indian Health Council Inc. (California) – $200,000 – As a health care consortium of nine California tribes, the Indian Health Council will continue its work building an integrated care model to address dementia affecting American Indian and Alaska Native people 55 and older in its service area. Their “Cognitive Health & Wellness Program” aligns with the five primary drivers identified by IHS that are integral to timely screening and patient care plan development and compliance, including support for caregivers.
• Nez Perce Tribe (Idaho) – $199,383 – The established Memory Care Program, in collaboration with the Nez Perce Tribe’s Nimiipuu Health primary care clinic, will enhance and expand its comprehensive and culturally sensitive dementia care program. It will provide education, elevate awareness, improve screening and diagnosis, create comprehensive care plans and case management, and provide culturally sensitive resources to support caregivers.
• Northern Valley Indian Health Inc. (California) – $200,000 – The Northern Valley Indian Health: Stronger Together Dementia Awareness Program will continue its work to enhance the quality of life for American Indian and Alaska Native patients living with dementia and their caregivers through comprehensive support services, caregiver training, community resources, and improved care coordination over the next three years.
• Santo Domingo Pueblo (New Mexico) – $199,716 – A first-time Alzheimer’s program grant recipient, its project aims to bridge cognitive service gaps by enhancing awareness, improving diagnosis and screening, implementing person-centered care models, providing comprehensive caregiver support, fostering community collaboration, and promoting knowledge exchange. It will improve dementia care in tribal and urban Indian communities by addressing service disparities, fostering community collaboration, and promoting sustainability.
• Tuba City Regional Health Care Corporation (TCRHCC) (Arizona) – $200,000 – TCRHCC, another first-time Alzheimer’s program grant recipient, is a nonprofit, tribal 638 organization in Coconino County. It is the sole health care provider in a region of over 33,000 Navajo, Hopi, and San Juan Southern Paiutes. The TCRHCC Neurology department currently provides various dementia-related care. This project will focus on building community-clinical linkages, increasing community awareness, supporting caregivers, and enhancing primary care providers’ capacity to screen patients for dementia.

The prevalence rates for dementia and cognitive impairment among American Indian and Alaska Native people are as high, or even higher, than those in other U.S. populations. In a more than 30-year study of 11 tribes released this spring, investigators reported that 54 percent of American Indians between the ages of 70 and 95 had cognitive impairment, with mild cognitive impairment affecting about 35 percent, and dementia another 10 percent.

“These findings clearly support the need for increased investment in care and services for American Indian and Alaska Native people living with dementia and for those who care for them,” according to Dr. Bruce Finke, an IHS family physician and geriatrician.

The IHS, an agency in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, provides a comprehensive health service delivery system for approximately 2.8 million American Indians and Alaska Natives who belong to 574 federally recognized tribes in 37 states. Follow the agency via social media on Facebook, X, and LinkedIn.