To support and enhance the Department’s consultation activities, HHS has also established a variety of Tribal Advisory Groups, which have proven to be a valuable resource for the Divisions they work with.
Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services Tribal Advisory Group (TTAG)
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Tribal Advisory Group (TTAG) was established in 2003 with the first face-to-face meeting at HHS in February 2004. The TTAG serves as an advisory body to CMS, providing expertise on policies, guidelines, and programmatic issues affecting the delivery of health care for AI/ANs served by Titles XVIII, XIX, and XXI of the Social Security Act or any other health care program funded (in whole or in part) by CMS.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Tribal Consultation Advisory Committee (CDC TCAC)
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), CDC Tribal Consultation Advisory Committee (TCAC) was established in 2006. The purpose of the TCAC as stated in our policy is to provide an ongoing means for tribal representatives and CDC staff to exchange information about public health issues in Indian country, identifies urgent public health needs in American Indian/Alaska Native communities, and discuss collaborative approaches to addressing these issues and needs.
http://www.cdc.gov/stltpublichealth/TribalSupport/TCAC/index.html
Health Research Advisory Council (HRAC)
The Health Research Advisory Council (HRAC) was established in 2006 through a collaboration of many senior federal representatives from those OPDIVs/STAFFDIVs of the Department. The Office of Minority Health houses the HRAC and leads the group. The HRAC will support, and not supplant, any other government-to-government consultation activities that HHS undertakes with regard to health research. It will function much like disease-specific advisory groups already do in certain agencies of the Department. HRAC will provide a forum through which tribes can advise the Department on their health research priorities and needs, as well as how best to carry out health research involving AIs/ANs. Through the HRAC, operating and staff divisions of the HHS (herein after referred to as OPDIV and STAFFDIV) representatives can better communicate and coordinate the work of their respective organizations in AI/AN health research, and the Department can disseminate information to tribes about research findings from HHS-sponsored studies focusing on the health of AI/AN populations.
HRAC members will also have a responsibility to communicate critical information, research findings, and any other policy related activity back to their respective tribes and/or communities. Each federal representative will have experience in AI/AN-related health research. The participating HHS components are: the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE), the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs (IGA), the Office of Minority Health (OMH), the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Indian Health Service (IHS), and the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
http://minorityhealth.hhs.gov/hrac/
Substance Abuse Mental Health Service Administration Tribal Technical Advisory Committee (STTAC)
The STTAC was established in 2007 and the purpose of the STTAC is to provide a complementary venue wherein the SAMHSA Administrator or designee will solicit advice and views about substance abuse and mental health issues from AI/AN representatives and discuss collaborative solutions. The STTAC will support, and not supplant, any other government-to-government consultation activities that it undertakes. The STTAC will provide an established, recurring venue wherein tribal officials will advise SAMHSA regarding the government-to-government consultation process and will help to ensure that activities or policies that impact Indian Tribes are brought to the attention of all tribal officials.
