Indian Health Service Announces Funding of High-Priority Health Care Infrastructure Projects through HHS Nonrecurring Expenses Fund

The IHS is pleased to announce the funding of several high-priority health care infrastructure projects through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Nonrecurring Expenses Fund (NEF) in fiscal year 2025. The NEF permits HHS to use unobligated balances of expired discretionary funds for capital acquisitions necessary for the operation of the Department, specifically information technology and facilities infrastructure acquisitions. These projects reflect IHS's continued commitment to expanding access to quality health care services in tribal communities.

One of the funded projects is the completion of the Pueblo Pintado Outpatient Facility in Pueblo Pintado, New Mexico. With $60 million in NEF funding and $231 million in annual appropriations from Congress, this project will complete construction of the health center and 82 staff quarters. Pueblo Pintado has been included on the 1993 IHS Health Care Facilities Construction Priority List, underscoring the long-standing need for this facility. Once complete, the Pueblo Pintado Health Center will include more than 126,000 gross square feet of clinical and support space. It will serve an estimated user population of 6,135, generating approximately 25,000 annual primary care provider visits and more than 49,000 outpatient visits. The facility will deliver expanded outpatient and community health services, as well as a full complement of ancillary and support services, improving health care access for the surrounding community.

The Hopi Health Care Center Quarters Project in Polacca, Arizona, has also been funded with $18.5 million to construct 50 new staff quarters units distributed between the Hopi Health Care Center (HHCC) and the Keams Canyon quarters locations, helping to address urgent housing shortages that affect staff recruitment and retention. The HHCC, which serves approximately 7,000 individuals from the Hopi and Navajo Tribes, is a 97,000 square foot facility located on the Hopi Reservation. It is fully accredited by The Joint Commission for hospital standards and plays a vital role in the delivery of health care in this region.

Other projects funded through NEF in FY 2025 include the Parker Quarters Projects in Parker, Arizona, funded at $25 million, which will provide an additional 25 staff quarter units to expand housing availability for staff at the Parker Indian Health Center, as well as the Great Plains Area Quarters, funded at $25 million, which will provide construction and renovation of quarters projects throughout the Great Plains Area.

We're happy to share this progress as part of ongoing efforts to support tribal health care through targeted infrastructure improvements.