Senator Murray secured the more than $1 million in funding needed to help finish construction of the Chief Seattle Club’s ?ál?al building, where the clinic is housed
Senator Murray: “The Seattle Indian Health Board’s new clinic in Pioneer Square is extraordinary and will help countless urban Natives get the high-quality and culturally-informed care they need.”
***PHOTOS OF THE EVENT HERE***
(Seattle, WA) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, joined local leaders to celebrate the opening of a new Seattle Indian Health Board clinic inside Chief Seattle Club’s new housing facility in Pioneer Square. As a longtime champion for both organizations, Senator Murray secured the $1 million in federal funding through Congressionally-directed spending (CDS) to help finish the construction of Chief Seattle Club’s ?ál?al building, where the clinic is housed. Murray also secured $5 million in federal funding to support the work of the Seattle Indian Health Board in the Fiscal Year 2023 draft appropriations bill that she is working to pass this year.
Senator Murray was given a tour of the clinic and gave remarks alongside Seattle Indian Health Board CEO Esther Lucero; Seattle City Council President Debora Juarez; Auburn City Councilmember Chris Stearns; Seattle Indian Health Board Chief Health Officer Dr. Socia Love-Thurman; Chief Seattle Club Executive Director Derrick Belgarde; and Deputy Seattle Mayor Greg Wong. The event was hosted by the Seattle Indian Health Board.
“I’m glad I was able to secure funding to help get Chief Seattle Club’s new housing development up and running and I look forward to delivering additional funding for the Seattle Indian Health Board,” said Senator Murray. “The Seattle Indian Health Board’s new clinic in Pioneer Square is extraordinary and will help countless urban Natives get the high-quality and culturally-informed care they need. This Congress has delivered one of the largest-ever federal investments in our Tribal communities—whether through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law or American Rescue Plan—and I am fully committed to building on that progress in every way that I can, and congressionally-directed spending is just another way I can fight for and support Native people.”
As a voice for Washington state’s Tribes in the Senate, Senator Murray has been committed to supporting Native communities throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and to creating economic opportunity for Native families. Senator Murray helped secure resources for Native-led health services in Seattle, including nearly $3 million in grants to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. In the American Rescue Plan, Senator Murray helped secure the largest ever federal investment in Tribes to support Tribal communities as they confronted the health and economic impacts of the pandemic. This included $20 billion for Tribes to combat COVID-19 and provide support to communities in need, more than $6 billion for the Indian Health Services to provide medical and public health support to Tribes, more than $1.2 billion to help provide affordable housing and homelessness services, and more than $1 billion for Native education programs to assist with learning during the pandemic.
In her role as a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Senator Murray has consistently fought to secure additional funding for Tribal communities. She has successfully secured increased funding for the Indian Housing Block Grant Program, which helps to combat the housing issues that specifically plague Tribal communities and provide housing assistance to Native Americans with low-incomes.
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