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Richie K. Grinnell, a member of the Sac and Fox Nation of Missouri,
began his career with the Indian Health Service (IHS), an agency within
the Department of Health and Human Services, in 1980. His first position
with the Agency was at the Wewoka Indian Health Center in the Ada
Service unit, IHS Oklahoma Area, as a field sanitarian with the
Environmental Health and Engineering Program.

Effective January 29, 2005, Mr. Grinnell assumed the position of the
Area Director for the IHS Nashville Area. As Area Director, he
administers a comprehensive health care program for American Indians
living in 14 states in the southern and eastern United States. The
Nashville Area health programs provide preventive, curative, and
environmental health services to more than 50,000 American Indians. The
Nashville Area consists of 27 federally recognized Tribes and Urban
groups. The largest IHS-funded facility in the Nashville Area is the
Cherokee Hospital in Cherokee, North Carolina, which is now managed by
the Eastern Band of Cherokees under a self-determination compact.
Cherokee is also the site of Unity Regional Treatment Center, a
residential substance abuse facility for adolescents that focuses on a
12-step program following traditional values. The Nashville Area is also
in the process of establishing two new federally operated Service Units.

Mr. Grinnell oversees a unique Indian health system composed of Tribes
that have assumed partial or full responsibility for their own health
care programs through Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance
Act, P.L. 93-638 Tribal contracts and compacts. As part of a national
Indian health system of Federal, Tribal, and Urban Indian health
programs, the Nashville Area also contributes to the support of two
Urban health programs located in New York, New York, and Jamaica Plains,
Massachusetts.

Mr. Grinnell has served in numerous positions of responsibility and
advocacy in the Indian health field. He served as a sanitarian at the
Wewoka Service Unit, the Southern Colorado Ute Service Unit, and the
Santa Fe Service Unit. He worked in the Albuquerque Area Office as the
Director, Division of Environmental Health; Associate Director, Office
of Environmental Health and Engineering; Acting Area Executive Officer;
and Acting Area Director. In 1999, Mr. Grinnell relocated to the
Nashville Area as the Associate Director, Office of Environmental Health
and Engineering. He has also served as Acting Nashville Area Executive
Officer and Acting Area Director.

Mr. Grinnell is a Commissioned Officer in the U.S. Public Health Service
and currently holds the rank of Captain. His service awards include the
Outstanding Service Medal, Achievement Medal (awarded twice); PHS
Citation, Commendation Medal (awarded twice); Unit Commendation (awarded
twice); and Crisis Response Service Award.

In 1978 he earned a bachelor of science degree in environmental science
from East Central State University, Ada, Oklahoma, and in 1990 he earned
a master of public health degree in environmental health from the
University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii.

January 2005