Timothy M. Westmoreland ^1* Kathryn R. Watson ²

¹ Georgetown University
² Georgetown University Law Center

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: westmort{at}law.georgetown.edu.

	Abstract

The reliance on discretionary spending for American Indian/Alaska Native health care has produced a system that is insufficient and unreliable and is associated with ongoing health disparities. Moreover, the gap between mandatory spending on a Medicare beneficiary and discretionary spending on an American Indian/Alaska Native beneficiary has grown dramatically, thus compounding the problem.

The budget classification for American Indian/Alaska Native health services should be changed, and health care delivery to this population should be designated as mandatory spending. If a correct structure is in place, mandatory spending is more likely to provide adequate funding that keeps pace with changes in costs and need.

Key Words: Government, Health Financing, Health Law, Health Policy, Native Americans

This article has been cited by other articles:

				S. J. Kunitz Ethics in Public Health Research: Changing Patterns of Mortality Among American Indians Am J Public Health, March 1, 2008; 98(3): 404 - 411. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]