Montana’s Indian people have poorer health, higher disease rates, lower life expectancy and greater difficulty obtaining health care than other Montanans. Nearly 40 percent of American Indians in Montana are uninsured. Many are ineligible for Indian Health Services (IHS) because they do not live on a reservation and/or are not a member of a federally recognized tribe. And the American Indian Montanans who do have access to IHS do not receive comprehensive health care; they must deal with severe underfunding and understaffing, as well as long wait lists and rationed care. Many Indian people are unable to receive needed care.