Indian Health Service opens 3 new employee housing complexes in Montana

Indian Health Service — the federal entity responsible for providing health care services to Native Americans — this week announced the opening of three employee housing complexes on the Crow, Fort Belknap and Blackfeet reservations. 

IHS leaders said they hope the housing developments will improve employee recruitment and retention. Rural communities nationwide face housing crises, and the problem is severe in Indian Country, where developers face bureaucratic challenges and federal housing funds don’t come close to meeting community needs. And while IHS recruits health care professionals from around the country, tribal health leaders say the lack of places to live often stands in the way of hiring. The job vacancy rate at IHS facilities nationwide is 30%, and the vacancy rate at the Crow/Northern Cheyenne Hospital is 47%, according to a news release. 

The new Medicine Spotted Beads Housing Complex at the Crow/Northern Cheyenne Hospital in southcentral Montana includes 18 units and can house up to 24 health care professionals. It also has a fitness center and shared community space. IHS did not immediately respond to a question about the cost of building the complex. 

IHS also recently opened a new $1.8 million four-plex apartment building on the Fort Belknap Reservation in northcentral Montana. And the nearly $20 million apartment complex on the Blackfeet Community Hospital campus in northwestern Montana, called Akaimi Nitoyiks (Many Lodges), includes 14 units with 24 total bedrooms. 

The projects were funded by Healthcare Facilities Construction Funds, Non-Recurring Expense Funds and Medicare and Medicaid collections, according to a news release. 

“One of our biggest issues is finding housing for providers,” Blackfeet Tribal Business Councilmember Lyle Rutherford told Montana Free Press on Thursday. “The [apartments] are really, really nice. I’m hoping it relieves some of that pressure.”