Sovereignty first
Tribal governments and Tribal health programs decide whether to partner, what data is in scope, and where it lives. VBB does not scrape, warehouse, or claim ownership of Tribal records.
Tribal veterans and partners
Evidence readiness that respects sovereignty.
Tribal data stays under Tribal authority. VBB does not replace Tribal programs.
Tribal veterans use the same VA claims system as other veterans — and often carry additional fragmentation across IHS, Tribal health, DoW, and VA records. VBB’s job is the same: help make evidence decision-ready before it becomes rework. How that work is hosted, who can see it, and whether it runs at all is a Tribal decision.
Same evidence problem, different trust boundary
Missing, disconnected, or hard-to-correlate evidence still delays claims. The process can be shared. The data boundary cannot be casual.
Humans stay in command
No official determination is made by a model. Tribal veterans still work with accredited representatives, clinicians, and the agencies that decide claims.
This path will
- Offer the same educational Evidence Gate veterans can use today.
- Discuss pilots that keep Tribal data under Tribal control.
- Treat government-to-government relationships as a requirement, not a slogan.
This path will not
- Claim Tribal preference, 8(a), or TERO status we have not established.
- Replace Indian Health Service, Tribal Veterans Service Officers, or Tribal programs.
- Treat Tribal health data as just another integration.