Natasha Royal, Contract Specialist

Natasha Royal serves as a Contracting Officer within the Indian Health Service, where she plays a pivotal role in advancing the agency’s mission to deliver culturally competent healthcare to American Indian and Alaska Native communities. She manages a diverse portfolio of acquisitions spanning clinical infrastructure, professional training, and operational support services, ensuring compliance with federal procurement regulations and tribal sovereignty principles. Her work directly supports the modernization of healthcare delivery systems in underserved tribal areas through strategic contracting that aligns with IHS’s long-term health equity goals. Royal maintains strong, ongoing relationships with key contractors including McKesson Corporation, Flintco, LLC, and tribal-serving organizations such as The Native American Rehabilitation Association of the Northwest and Tribal Health, LLC. Her contracting approach emphasizes partnerships with both large-scale vendors capable of delivering complex medical systems and mission-aligned tribal entities that provide culturally appropriate services. These relationships reflect a balanced procurement strategy that integrates national capacity with community-based expertise. Her contracting patterns demonstrate a pronounced commitment to socioeconomic set-asides, with nearly 40% of awards designated under the Buy Indian and Indian Small Business Economic Enterprise (ISBEE) authorities—specialized mechanisms unique to IHS and the Department of the Interior. An additional 22% are awarded under Total Small Business Set-Asides, underscoring her consistent prioritization of Native-owned and tribally controlled businesses. While Women-Owned Small Business set-asides are less frequent, her overall portfolio reflects a robust framework for inclusive contracting under FAR Part 19. Her primary procurement focus lies in NAICS 611430 (Professional and Management Development Training), reflecting a strategic investment in workforce capacity building, followed by convention and trade show organizing (561920) and hotel services (721110) to support tribal health conferences and provider training events. She also procures medical equipment and software through NAICS 423430, demonstrating technical fluency in healthcare IT and clinical infrastructure procurement.