A LEGISLATIVE COMMEMORATION, Honoring and commending the Rosebud Tribe and the Indian Health Service for efficiently allocating and delivering the COVID-19 vaccine.

WHEREAS, throughout history, Native communities have been devastated by pandemics, including smallpox, the 1918 flu, and several others; and

WHEREAS, Tribal communities have designed and implemented policies in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic to effectively vaccinate their populations at nearly twice the rate of the State of South Dakota; and

WHEREAS, the Indian Health Service and the Rosebud Tribe hold two mass vaccination clinics a week, with their dedicated officials driving up to one hundred miles in one direction while braving dangerous weather conditions to vaccinate their most rural populations; and

WHEREAS, the Rosebud Tribe's effectiveness and success in vaccinating their people has been shown by the incredibly low number of active cases; and

WHEREAS, Rosebud Indian Health Service has also given nonmembers access to the vaccine to protect communities and the State of South Dakota:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT COMMEMORATED, by the Ninety-Sixth Legislature of the State of South Dakota, that the Legislature honors and commends the Rosebud Tribe and the Indian Health Service for their service to the citizens of South Dakota and for their unrivaled efficiency in vaccinating the Sicangu Oyate and the people of South Dakota.