[Federal Register: July 12, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 132)]
[Notices]
[Page 41824-41825]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr12jy04-48]
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DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN AND HEALTH SERVICES
Indian Health Service
Partners Invited To Participate in Indian Health Service: Health
Promotion and Disease Prevention Health Summit and Other American
Indian/Alaska Native Tribe, Tribal Entity Activities
AGENCY: Indian Health Service, Department of Health and Human Service
(HHS).
ACTION: Notice of invitation to participate in Health Promotion and
Disease Prevention (HP/DP) Health Summit.
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SUMMARY: The Indian Health Service (IHS), in an ongoing partnership
with American Indian and Alaska native (AI/AN) people in order to
elevate the health status of this population to its highest level, is
seeking to collaborate with other public and private organizations to
support its many programs and initiatives. Despite concerted and
sustained efforts by the IHS and Tribal programs, substantial
disparities in health persist for AI/AN people, compared to the overall
United States (U.S.) population. For this reason, the IHS has planned
an ambitious initiative on HP/DP, the ``Healthier Indian Communities
through Partnership and Prevention Summit,'' to be held on September
21-24, 2004 in Washington, DC. A pre-summit IHS/HHS/tribal leaders
meeting will be held on September 21, 2004.
At the HP/DP Summit, the IHS will explore with interested public
and private organizations, the risk behaviors that contribute to the
chronic lifestyle diseases that impact many AI/AN communities. Included
topics will be preventing diabetes among at-risk populations,
increasing the likelihood that persons with undiagnosed diabetes are
diagnosed, reducing complications of diabetes, preventing and reducing
overweight and obesity, and reducing the complications of asthma. The
HP/DP Summit will provide an opportunity to meet with organizations and
entities that have achieved these outcomes by improving nutrition,
increasing physical activity, preventing tobacco use and exposure,
increasing tobacco cessation, increasing the use of appropriate health
care services, improving the quality of health care, and increasing
effective self-management of chronic diseases and associated risk
factors.
At the HP/DP Summit, the IHS goal is to meet with potential
partners in Tribal and community-focused programs that include the full
engagement of schools, businesses, faith-communities, health care
purchasers, health plans, health care providers, academic institutions,
senior centers, and many other community sectors working together to
promote health and prevent chronic disease. At the HP/DP Summit, the
IHS will present partnership opportunities such as: (1) Healthy Native
Communities Fellowship Program; (2) Building Alliances for Communities
in Action for Wellness (Resource Roundtable Conferences); (3) Community
Wellness Champion Forums; and (4) the Just Move It campaign. In the
future, the IHS plans to work together with partners to promote health
and prevent disease throughout Indian country. It is intended that
these partnerships will create opportunities for businesses and other
organizations to participate in shaping a healthier U.S. More
information about the Summit is available at http://www.ihs.gov/hpdp.
DATES: Comments expressing or affirming an interest in co-sponsoring of
the HP/DP Summit--``Healthier Indian Communities through Partnership
and Prevention''--and/or partnerships with the IHS should be received
within 45 days of publication of this notice. The Summit, ``Healthier
Indian Communities through Partnership and Prevention,'' will take
place September 21-24, 2004, in Washington, DC. Contact information to
permit further discussion and consideration of ideas of mutual interest
may be sent to the e-mail address set out in the next paragraph.
ADDRESSES: Expressions of interest, comments and questions may be sent
to the following e-mail address, abecenti@hqe.ihs.gov or by regular
mail with contact information, as appropriate, to: Alberta Becenti,
Office of Public Health, Reyes Building, 801 Thompson Avenue, Suite
320, Rockville, MD 20852-1627. Organization representatives may also
call an information line at (301) 443-4305. Callers will be directed to
appropriate agency officials or to other collaborating partners with
similar or complementary interests for further discussions.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The IHS is the Federal agency responsible
for delivering direct health care services to more than 560 Federally-
recognized AI/AN tribes. Meeting the health needs of Indian communities
requires effective partnerships and collaborations so that all
components of a healthy community can be addressed. The IHS is focusing
on the importance of partnerships, community and prevention. The IHS
HP/DP Summit will focus on the present and future directions of HP/DP
for AI/AN.
The conference will increase opportunities to share information,
present the health status and challenges of Indian country today, and
create and expand opportunities to partner and share HP/DP best and
promising practices.
Partnership With Private Sector Organizations
The IHS has limited resources with which to achieve implementation
of such large-scale nationwide changes. Moreover, to achieve numerous
behavioral changes, the involvement of both public and private
organizations is necessary. For efforts of this magnitude, the Agency
periodically invites outside organizations to join in carrying out
activities of mutual interest to achieve shared objectives. These
partnerships are voluntary. The parties work together to carry out
their respective, consistent missions for the common good. In
accordance with each entity's particular strengths and abilities,
partnerships will be established; each partner will be responsible for
providing the resources necessary to carry out specified activities of
mutual interest. As partners with the IHS, both public and private
sector organizations can bring their respective ideas and expertise,
administrative capabilities, and production and material resources.
Examples include sharing in the development of educational health
information and its distribution to employees or to the public to
promote healthy lifestyles in order to prevent chronic diseases,
developing programs aimed at improving consumers' understanding of how
proper dietary
[[Page 41825]]
choices and physical activity can improve health and prevent obesity
and other chronic diseases, or providing practical guidance and
information on how to obtain diagnostic and treatment services.
Partnership agreements will make clear that there will be no
Federal endorsement of commercial products or of particular companies.
The IHS has a right to review the use of IHS HP/DP Summit logos and
statements related to the HP/DP Summit on such materials and products
to ensure that they are suitable and that Government neutrality with
respect to commercial products is maintained. Partnership agreements
will make clear that potential partners are carrying out their own
program in conjunction with the IHS goals. When the HP/DP Summit logo
is approved for use on commercial materials or products that promote
health and prevent disease, a disclaimer will be required to be printed
on, or affixed to commercial partner materials and products indicating
that the use of the logo does not imply any Federal endorsement or
warranty of a particular commercial product or of other products of a
particular company.
Evaluation Criteria
After engaging in exploratory discussions of potential partnerships
and partnership activities with respondents, the following
considerations will be used by the IHS officials, as appropriate and
relevant, to ensure the partnership activities with particular entities
and the scope of those activities achieve the mission of the IHS.
1. Has the outside entity demonstrated a willingness to work
collaboratively with other public and private sector organizations to
achieve the stated goals of the IHS goals or to advance related
efforts, activities, or initiatives?
2. Are the activities proposed by the offering entity likely to
provide a substantial public health benefit that is consistent with the
IHS and HHS goals?
3. Does the proposed partnership's potential for public health
benefit outweigh any appearance of conflict that may potentially have a
negative impact on the Agency and its ability to accomplish its
missions?
4. What adjustments, if any, would make the proposal acceptable?
5. Does the outside entity have the expertise and capacity to carry
out its proposed activities?
Given the IHS HP/DP Summit goals and consistent interests, entities
that wish to partner with the IHS and Tribal governments to support its
efforts are encouraged to reply to this notice. Working together, it is
intended that these partnerships will provide innovative opportunities
to support and honor AI/AN communities at the IHS HP/DP Summit. The HP/
DP Summit is funded by the IHS.
Dated: July 2, 2004.
Charles W. Grim,
Assistant Surgeon General, Director.
[FR Doc. 04-15713 Filed 7-9-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4160-16-M