Warm Valley and Wind River leaders describe clinic expansion, new electronic record system and push to keep specialty care local

Warm Valley Healthcare officials told the Select Committee on Tribal Relations on June 16 that the clinic in Fort Washki has expanded its physical capacity and clinical offerings since it transitioned to tribal control under a 638 compact in July 2024.

"We expanded clinic space from 14 rooms to 26 rooms," said Max Matson, an internal medicine physician who identified himself as chief medical officer at Warm Valley Healthcare. Matson said the clinic now employs more than 100 people and has recently added services including cardiac stress testing, spirometry and plans for infusion services.

Matson said the clinic is broadening specialty access through partnerships. "One of our full‑time pediatricians is actually a University of Utah faculty member — it’s a rotation of five providers — and we’re trying to build relationships so more subspecialty care can be coordinated without patients traveling long distances," he said.

The clinic also has completed a major electronic health record transition. "We got rid of RPMS and switched to Cerner PowerChart," Matson said. He described the change as a significant undertaking that will improve population‑health tracking and clinical workflows.

As part of governance changes tied to the 638 transfer, Matson said the tribe created a health board to provide oversight and guidance for Warm Valley and related programs. He provided names of the initial board members and said the board is drafting a charter and leadership roles.

Committee members pressed clinic leaders about patient access and payment for services. Matson said visits inside the clinic are provided to tribal members without a point‑of‑service charge and the clinics bill available payers (Medicaid, Medicare and private insurance) where applicable. He described Purchase Referred Care (PRC), a federal funding mechanism, as the main means of paying for care that must be provided outside clinic facilities when patients are PRC‑eligible; otherwise outside care is paid by the patient’s insurer or the patient.

Clinic officials also discussed the continuing challenges of health‑care coordination across tribal clinics. Warm Valley and neighboring Wind River Cares use separate electronic records; Matson said the clinics are working to provide remote chart access so providers can see each other’s records while full record sharing remains a longer‑term goal.

Wind River Family Community Healthcare leaders also outlined broader community projects during the committee meeting, including plans for additional clinic sites, a pharmacy, pediatric services and a proposed joint‑venture clinic. One tribal leader told the committee that consultant estimates for a large joint‑venture facility ranged into the tens of millions of dollars and would be sized to serve the reservation population.

Committee members and tribal leaders repeatedly linked health outcomes to social determinants such as housing and transportation. Speakers urged continued coordination between tribal clinics, regional hospitals and state agencies to stabilize referrals and reduce the burden of duplicate testing and emergency visits.

The committee did not take formal action; staff said agencies would follow up on funding questions and on longer‑term coordination needs.