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WASHINGTON, D.C. - Sault Tribe Chairperson Aaron Payment has been elected Vice Chair of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary's Tribal Advisory Committee (STAC), in which he and other tribal leaders meet directly with Secretary Sylvia Burwell on Indian health issues.

Payment serves as an at-large representative on the HHS STAC. The tribe's Unit I Director Cathy Abramson also serves on the committee as the representative for the Bemidji area, which covers Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois and Indiana.

Abramson said, "The HHS STAC does wonderful work to impact our HHS programs and services. I urged Aaron to join this committee in 2013 so I am pleased to have seconded the nomination for him as Vice Chair. If we are to solve problems back home, we have to advocate for our people at the highest level."

"Aaron has skill and passion for this responsibility," Abramson added.

Health and Human Services oversees has 11 operating divisions, with eight agencies in the U.S. Public Health Service and three human services agencies, including Administration for Children and Families, Administration for Community Living, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Food and Drug Administration, Health Resources and Services Administration, Indian Health Service, National Institutes of Health, Office for Civil Rights, Office of Inspector General and Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

The committee was established in 2011 with 17 appointees, established to reform and enhance how the HHS works with Indian Country. STAC consists of representatives from each of the 12 Indian Health Service administrative regions in the country and five national at-large representatives.

Payment is a nationally known and respected leader. He is serving his second term as Chairperson of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians. He serves on the National Advisory Council on Indian Education by Presidential Appointment; National Congress of American Indians, Executive Officer ~ Secretary; HHS Secretary Tribal Advisory Council Member; HHS Health Research Advisory Council Co-Chair; National Institutes of Health ~ Tribal Advisory Committee; Tribal Interior Budget Committee; Mid-West Alliance of Sovereign Tribes, Vice President; United Tribes of Michigan, Vice President; Chippewa Ottawa Treaty Resource Authority, Chairperson; Inter-Tribal Council of Michigan, Vice President; Chippewa-Luce-Mackinac Community Action Agency, Vice Chair; and Michigan Political Leadership Program, Advisory Board and Presenter.