RWI Benefits addresses 'Power of Indian Country' at OIGA

“The Power of Indian Country”

This was the title of a presentation given by Robert Weaver, the president and owner of RWI Benefits, LLC at the Oklahoma Indian Gaming Association last week.  RWI is a wholly-owned Native American Insurance Management Firm with the goal to provide Native Health Care Reform while protecting Tribal Sovereignty for the stabilization of Tribes.

Aside from explaining key points in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) and how it will affect Native Americans, Robert outlined steps to implement the PPACA: LEARN, PLAN, DREAM, and ACT.  The message was excellent.  Tribes should not wait to see how the PPACA will affect them.  Instead Tribes should prepare now by:  learning what will cause them to be in non-compliance, assign “Implementation Teams” within Tribes, form alliances with other Tribes, share information between the Tribes, and identify resources to clarify what the PPACA means.

Robert further explained that as Sovereign Nations, Tribes contain many unique advantages and opportunities to go beyond what has been passed in this Act and achieve a collective dream of health care for all Native Americans.  The planning efforts should include action plans that leverage these advantages and opportunities into real health care reform for Native America.  Tribes are not limited by the rules that are published for the PPACA implementation, nor should they limit their thinking and dreaming as they plan the future of Native American Health Care Reform and exercising their right to Sovereignty! 

All Tribal Members can have Health Care.  We cannot rely on this new Health Care Reform Act to provide for Native American Health Care Reform.  We must proceed with self reliance and self-governance in our actions.  We must “use” the reform Act as a tool to help reach our goal and not as the path of reaching our goal.

Health care for all of Tribal members is the dream for Native America.  When Tribes work together, we achieve “The Power of Indian Country”.