Indigenous Americans Have Higher COVID Rates

Misbar’s investigation found that the claims are true. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), non-Hispanic Native American and Alaska Native individuals account for 0.7 percent of the population but have 1.3 percent of COVID-19 cases reported. 

According to the Wisconsin State Journal, COVID-19 cases among Native Americans in Wisconsin have tripled since the beginning of September. The numbers include Native Americans who live on reservations and who live elsewhere. This happened despite efforts against the disease. “The tribes were extremely, extremely cautious,” said Matthew Dellinger, an epidemiologist at the Medical College of Wisconsin. 

According to the Journal of Public Management and Practice, with inadequate public health infrastructure, limited medical resources, and high rates of poverty, communities on reservations are poorly equipped to manage a pandemic such as COVID-19. The indigenous population experiences significant economic deprivation and some of the starkest health outcomes, placing these individuals at a higher risk to contract the virus.

There is at least one exception according to StatNews.com. The Cherokee Nation has been able to curtail its COVID-19 case and death rates even as those numbers surge in surrounding Oklahoma.

The Cherokee Nation, with about 140,000 citizens on its reservation in northeastern Oklahoma, has reported just over 4,000 cases and 33 deaths. That’s compared to the Navajo Nation, which has seen nearly 13,000 cases and 602 deaths among its roughly 170,000 citizens. The Cherokee Nation held coronavirus task force meetings twice a day, screened thousands of employees, stockpiled PPE, protected elders, ensured food security, and educated residents in both English and Cherokee language.

Overall, COVID-19 has disproportionately affected communities and people of color in the U.S. The pandemic has particularly ravaged Native American communities.