WINNEBAGO, Neb. (AP) – The Winnebago Tribal Council has taken steps to take over management of a hospital on a Native American reservation in northeastern Nebraska.
The Sioux City Journal reports that the council voted last week to initiate the process of taking control of the Omaha Winnebago Hospital.
The tribe hopes to assume operation of the hospital by July 1.
Self-governance allows Native American tribes to assume administration of federal programs. A steering committee has been formed to help the Winnebago Tribal Council prepare for the negotiations and eventual management of the hospital.
The move comes more than two years after the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services terminated the hospital's Medicare contract after the Indian Health Service and hospital officials failed to correct serious quality-of-care deficiencies the agency had found.
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Information from: Sioux City Journal, http://www.siouxcityjournal.com