Jump to navigation

The University of Arizona Wordmark Line Logo White
Home
  • Indigenous Governance Database
  • CONSTITUTIONS RESOURCE CENTER
  • Home
  • Key Resources
    • Conferences, Seminars & Symposia
    • NNI and Harvard Project Research
    • Great Tribal Leaders of Modern Times
    • Good Native Governance
    • Indigenous Leaders Fellows
    • Native Nation Building TV
    • Leading Native Nations
    • Emerging Leaders
  • NNI Tools
  • About
  • Contact Us
  • My Library
  • Login
Indigenous Governance Database

American Indian Reservations and COVID-19 Correlates of Early Infection Rates in the Pandemic

  • Resource
  • Details
  • Citation

Not Related

Author: 
Desi Rodriguez Lonebear
Nicolás E. Barceló
Stephanie Russo Carroll
Randall K.Q. Akee
Year: 
2020

American Indian Reservations and COVID-19.jpg

American_Indian_Reservations_and_COVID_19_.14.pdf

PDF icon American Indian Reservations and COVID-19 Correlates of Early Infection Rates in the Pandemic

Objective: To determine the household and community characteristics most closely associated with variation in COVID-19 incidence on American Indian reservations in the lower 48 states.

Design: Multivariate analysis with population weights.

Setting: Two hundred eighty-seven American Indian Reservations and tribal homelands (in Oklahoma) and, as of April 10, 2020, 861 COVID-19 cases on these reservation lands.

Main Outcome Measures: The relationship between rate per 1000 individuals of publicly reported COVID-19 cases at the tribal reservation and/or community level and average household characteristics from the 2018 5-Year American Community Survey records.

Results: By April 10, 2020, in regression analysis, COVID-19 cases were more likely by the proportion of homes lacking indoor plumbing (10.83, P = .001) and were less likely according to the percentage of reservation households that were English-only (−2.43, P = .03). Household overcrowding measures were not statistically significant in this analysis (−6.40, P = .326).

Conclusions: Failure to account for the lack of complete indoor plumbing and access to potable water in a pandemic may be an important determinant of the increased incidence of COVID-19 cases. Access to relevant information that is communicated in the language spoken by many reservation residents may play a key role in the spread of COVID-19 in some tribal communities. Household overcrowding does not appear to be associated with COVID-19 infections in our data at the current time. Previous studies have identified household plumbing and overcrowding, and language, as potential pandemic and disease infection risk factors. These risk factors persist. Funding investments in tribal public health and household infrastructure, as delineated in treaties and other agreements, are necessary to protect American Indian communities.

tribal health care, housing, public policy, Indian housing
Share
Resource Type: 
Guides, Tools and Data
Useful Links: 
Reservation COVID-19 Cases (Indian Country Today)
Commission of the Pan American Health Organization on Equityand Health Inequalities in the Americas
Indian Health Services. Indian health disparities.
Topics: 
Health and Social Services, Economic and Community Development

Rodriguez-Lonebear, Desi PhD; Barceló, Nicolás E. MD; Akee, Randall PhD; Carroll, Stephanie Russo DrPH, MPH. American Indian Reservations and COVID-19, Journal of Public Health Management and Practice: July/August 2020 - Volume 26 - Issue 4 - p 371-377 doi: 10.1097/PHH.0000000000001206

Related Resources: 

Interview with Dr. Stephanie Carroll about New Research on COVID-19 Spread in Indian Country

Interview with Dr. Stephanie Carroll about New Research on COVID-19 Spread in Indian Country
Interview with Dr. Stephanie Carroll about New Research on COVID-19 Spread in Indian Country
Listen to public health researcher Stephanie Carroll, co-author of “American Indian Reservations and COVID-19: Correlates of Early Infection Rates in the Pandemic.” Hear about this new research showing which factors, like household plumbing and language barriers, correlate with a higher spread of...
Read more

On the Front Lines: Tribal Nations Take on COVID-19

On the Front Lines: Tribal Nations Take on COVID-19
On the Front Lines: Tribal Nations Take on COVID-19
Like governments around the world, America’s 574 federally recognized tribal nations are racing to protect their citizens from the coronavirus. Impacting tribes at a rate four times higher than for the US population, the pandemic is testing the limits of tribal public health infrastructures...
Read more

Native Governance Center_Indigenized Communication During COVID-19.jpg .png

Indigenized Communication During COVID-19
Indigenized Communication During COVID-19
During times of crisis, the messages we send to our stakeholders matter more than ever. Tribal governments and Native organizations are on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic and are making important decisions to protect the health and safety of their people. As Indigenous people, we believe...
Read more

IGD Database Search

Enter a search term

Quick Links

  • What's New at the Native Nations Institute?
  • Indigenous Governance Program
  • NNI Radio
  • US Indigenous Data Sovereignty Network

Other Useful Resources

Angela Wesley: A "Made in Huu-ay-aht" Constitution
Eldena Bear Don't Walk and Rae Nell Vaughn: So What's So Important About Tribal Courts? (Q&A)
Luann Leonard, Stephen Roe Lewis and Walter Phelps: Bridging the Gap: How Native Culture Forges Native Leaders
Good Native Governance: Keynote Address
Carlos Hisa and Esequiel (Zeke) Garcia: Ysleta del Sur Pueblo: Redefining Citizenship
  • About
  • NNI Hub
  • Key Resources
  • Constitutions Resource Center
  • Indigenous Governance Database
  • Login

The Native Nations Institute and The University of Arizona make efforts to ensure the information presented is accurate and up to date, but make no claims, promises, or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the content contained on this website.  This website's content is the opinion of the specific author, not statements of advice, opinion, or information from The University of Arizona, and contains links to third party sites.  The University of Arizona is not responsible for and neither approves nor endorses third party website content.  Information presented on this website and the registered trademarks, service marks, wordmarks, and logos of the Native Nations Institute and the University of Arizona may not be reproduced without express written permission. 

The University of Arizona respects intellectual property and privacy rights.  Please refer to The University of Arizona's Copyright Notice and Information Security & Privacy policies for more information.


© 2021 The Arizona Board of Regents on behalf of The University of Arizona.