The Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board (NPAIHB) hosted the National Tribal Opioid Summit at Tulalip, Washington from August 22-24, 2023, to address the intersection of Covid 19 and the opioid crisis throughout our communities.

In 2019, NPAIHB completed it’s ‘Tribal Opioid Response: National Strategic Agenda.’ However, over the past three years, substance use and overdoses have increased significantly; synthetic opioids have become a major threat to the health and well-being of Tribal citizens. In response, NPAIHB Chairman Nickolaus D. Lewis (Lummi Nation) began asking Health and Human Services (HHS), Region 10 to support a Northwest Tribal Opioid Summit. What has become strikingly clear is that a national Tribally-driven opioid summit with Federal, Regional, and State decision-makers is needed to comprehensively address this crisis.

NPAIHB and Tribal leaders recognize the pain and heartbreak of losses in our communities, the anxiety of behavioral health prover shortages and provider burnout, and the lack of culturally specific substance use treatment and recovery programs. The summit program addressed the need for increased funding and policy changes to collectively and strategically tackle the crisis.

Day one focused on centering the voices of recovery and Tribal communities. Day two will focused on solutions, such as programs that have been shown to be effective in Indian Country, culture as prevention and intervention, and a culture night hosted by the Tulalip Tribe of Indians. Day three will centered on prioritizing policy recommendations and updating the ‘Tribal Opioid Response: National Strategic Agenda’ and the development of a legislative tool kit.

For more information on the National Tribal Opioid Summit please reach out to us at summit@npaihb.org .