WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. – Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren told the House Committee on Veterans Affairs that the lack of adequate Veterans Administration health care on the Navajo Nation is not reflective of the continuous contributions the Navajo people have provided the U.S. in wartime and peacetime.
“Native Americans have a profound and honored legacy with the United States military,” he told the committee in Washington on Thursday. “Our warriors have served with distinction in every major conflict since World War I.”
He reminded the committee that during World War II, Navajo Code Talkers created an unbreakable code that was instrumental to secure victory in the Pacific Theater.
“Their valor and ingenuity exemplify the patriotism and sacrifice that is a hallmark of the Navajo people,” the President said.
President Nygren was introduced to the committee by Rep. Eli Crane, R-Ariz., who represents the Navajo Nation and half of Arizona’s tribes.
“The rural and tribal areas I represent do not have reliable access to VA services,” Rep. Crane said. “Unfortunately, despite their remarkable impact on our military history and culture, Navajo veterans face many barriers to VA service and care. The VA hospitals in Phoenix and Albuquerque are the only full service medical centers within driving distance to the Navajo Nation.”
He said those clinics often focus on primary care. That means clinics do not have the resources to address severe PTSD and lack the ability to provide specialty care for chronic pain or diabetes, two of the most common diagnoses among Navajo veterans, he said.
“This is unacceptable,” Rep. Crane said. “I hope that in this hearing today we can discuss ways to address this to ensure our tribal veterans can receive the care they need and deserve.”
President Nygren told the committee that the distances Navajo veterans have to drive to receive VA health care “presents a formidable obstacle, often requiring veterans to travel many, many hours, at great personal expense, across remote areas just to receive basic services.”
He said that burden is compounded by high rates of poverty, unemployment and limited access to transportation.
He said the digital divide and lack of internet access for many prevents Navajo veterans from using telehealth services.
“This limitation is not just a matter of convenience,” he said, “but a barrier to essential healthcare, mental health services and benefits assistance.”
Another problem Navajo veterans face, he said, was the shortage of doctors and other professionals on the Navajo Nation required for the care they need.
“There is a scarcity of medical professionals in our region,” he said. “This shortage means that even basic care can be very hard to come by. Compensation and pension exams, which are crucial for veterans seeking disability benefits, are often delayed or inaccessible due to this lack.”
President Nygren said Navajo veterans have earned the right to accessible, quality care and benefits through their service and sacrifice. Because of that, he said, he was asking Congress to work with his administration to bring a full-service VA medical center to the Navajo Nation.
“This center would provide quality care for not only our Navajo veterans, but most of the rural southwestern part of the United States,” he said. “I am asking Congress to appropriate funds to build a one-of-a-kind VA benefits centers in the New Mexico side of the Nation to help educate our veterans about the benefits they earned together through their service.”
“Our Navajo veterans have honored their commitments to our nation,” he said. “It is time that we honor ours to them.”
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