SANTA ANA PUEBLO, N.M. — Officials from the Indian Health Service and the Department of Health and Human Services toured a site at Santa Ana Pueblo, New Mexico, where construction of a $22 million federal medical center is scheduled to begin in 2027. The 235,000-square-foot facility will replace healthcare services first promised to Native American patients more than 30 years ago.

An empty lot between a fire station and a soccer field just outside Albuquerque will be the home of the new center, which will be run by the Indian Health Service. Earlier this month, Santa Ana Pueblo Governor Myron Armijo led federal officials on a tour of the site where patients are to receive dialysis, diabetes care and optometry services.

In February, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. pledged $1 billion toward long-delayed Indian Health Service projects, including $22 million for the Santa Ana Pueblo center. The Indian Health Service estimates it needs $8 billion to complete all remaining projects on a 1993 list before it can address other major construction needs.

In 1993, the agency identified the Albuquerque Indian Health Center among more than 60 clinics and hospitals for replacement due to age, condition and inability to serve a growing population. The Albuquerque facility, originally built 90 years ago, remains on the list along with six other projects in Arizona and New Mexico. Some patients report waiting months for an appointment at the aging and overextended center.

"The $1 billion is the single largest financial investment by any administration in addressing the aging facilities and demonstrates the federal government's neglect of its legal duty to provide adequate healthcare to tribal nations," said A.C. Locklear, CEO of the National Indian Health Board. Locklear said the investment addresses only a small portion of the funds needed to modernize these facilities.

Indian Health Service officials say the Albuquerque facility will eventually be replaced by two new facilities in the Albuquerque area, including the one planned at Santa Ana Pueblo. Federal law requires the Indian Health Service to complete the 1993 list of replacement projects before building new facilities.

Theresa Nelson, a 62-year-old Navajo Nation citizen, said the Albuquerque Indian Health Center uses outdated X-ray machines, exam rooms and waiting room furniture. Nelson said she has been waiting eight weeks for Indian Health Service to approve a referral for a 3D mammogram.

In 2023, the Indian Health Service completed the replacement project for the Sioux San Hospital in Rapid City, South Dakota, renaming it the Oyate Health Center. The Indian Health Service serves 2.8 million Native American and Alaska Native patients at 21 hospitals and 78 smaller health centers nationwide. According to a 2023 GAO report, the average age of Indian Health Service facilities is around 40 years, and one-third are in poor physical condition.