Senator Heidi Heitkamp says she hopes a weekend Native American Veterans’ Summit will lead to better coordination – and better services – for Native vets.
"There are veterans issues all across the state, but none more critical or acute than the issues so many of our Native American veterans have," said Heitkamp. She says the veterans feel isolated -- and invisible. "That's because of the remoteness of where they live, because they live on the reservation, and because they deal with the dual relationship with Indian Health Service and with the VA."
Heitkamp says for some veterans, getting services means travel.
"What they want is better coordination on the ground with Native American vets and the organizations that deal with Native American vets," said Heitkamp. "They want better coordination between IHS and the VA. They want better access to jobs, better access to their education benefits, all the things that we know are critical."
Heitkamp says the vets also want a quicker response.
"I'm not big into just checking the box here," said Heitkamp. "We need to follow up and see if we can get a different outcome for some of these vets."