HAFA Adai Delegate King-Hinds:
The Matua Council for Native Chamorro Advancement urgently seek your cooperation to submit your support in the proposed “Amendment to H.R. 8800” offered by Delegate James C. Moylan for Guam; and to seek to include the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Island in the amendment as part of the “downwinder” for the people of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
As you know, the issue on inclusion of the CNMI in the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act or RECA as “downwinders” is not new to the CNMI delegate’s office. We acknowledge and thankful for the Guam delegate’s office on their effort to include the CNMI in the RECA amendment in the last decade. The latest effort was prior to the filing of H.R. 7672, “To amend the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act to include Guam,” dated Feb. 25, 2026. Unfortunately, the CNMI delegate’s office failed to timely respond to support this effort. It is our fervent hope that this will not be the case this time around.
It is imperative that you act swiftly to timely allow the House Armed Services Committee to consider the inclusion of all parties in the proposed resolution to amend H.R. 8800 or the National Defense Authorization Act.
As you are aware, cancer is the second leading cause of death in the CNMI — a major health crisis as the nature of cancer mortality in the CNMI presents unique challenges due to late-stage diagnosis, often caught so late that patients are left to only palliative care. Some of these challenges are attributed to lack of access to quality care, specialists and healthcare facilities requiring patients to travel off island such as Guam, Honolulu, and the continental United States.
Adding injury to these challenges faced by cancer patients is the financial burden placed on them and their families. This fiscal burden includes the CNMI’s only public healthcare institution, the Commonwealth Healthcare Corporation in providing the needed care because of late-stage diagnosis.
Again, on behalf of Matua Council, we seek your utmost attention and cooperation to respond accordingly for the benefit of the people of the CNMI who are negatively impacted as downwinders in the Mariana Islands archipelago. To this end, this amendment stand to positively impact the financial condition of CHCC and the CNMI government.
We trust that you will take this opportunity to formally submit your letter of support to the respective offices to ensure the inclusion of the people of the CNMI and Guam in the proposed amendment for HASC on the NDAA.
Moreover, this action furthers the promise as espoused in the Covenant Agreement Article VII, Section 701, stating in part, “The Government of the United States will assist the Northern Mariana Islands in its effort to achieve a progressively higher standard of living for its people as part of the American economic community…”; hence, access to quality healthcare is one of the integral promises in this provision.
Please submit your letter of support to the office of the honorable Delegate James C. Moylan and to the House Armed Services Committee on the amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act as soon as practicable and not later than Monday, June 15, 2026, Chamorro Standard Time.
Un dångkulu na si Yu’us Ma’åsi! Sen Mas,
LIANA M.S. HOFSCHNEIDER
President/CEO
Matua Council for Native Chamorro Advancement
