‘We’re vulnerable’: On the Navajo Nation, a rush to curb the coronavirus
4 years, 8 months ago

‘We’re vulnerable’: On the Navajo Nation, a rush to curb the coronavirus

LA Times  

A Navajo woman herds her sheep near Two Grey Hills, N.M. Road closures, mask mandates and weekend curfews have not stopped a troubling upward trajectory of coronavirus-related deaths on the Navajo Nation, a high desert landscape with underfunded hospitals and overburdened doctors stretching across three states. There shouldn’t be anyone who says they don’t know what’s going on with COVID-19,” Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez said during a virtual town hall this week. A day earlier, Navajo Nation officials, who represent 175,000 residents, traveled to Phoenix for a roundtable meeting with President Trump that, among other things, included discussion about the virus’s toll on Native American populations. “Thirty percent of our Navajo residents still don’t have access to running water,” said Begay, noting that Centers for Disease Control and Prevention practices like consistent hand-washing can prove difficult.

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History of this topic

The Times podcast: How Native Americans became a vaccine success story
3 years, 4 months ago

The Times podcast: How Native Americans became a vaccine success story

LA Times  

Kathleen Adams, head public-health nurse at the Fort Belknap reservation in Montana, carries coolers to her car on her way to vaccinate a community member. The pandemic has exacerbated longstanding health inequities, and a deep-rooted distrust in the federal government made tribal leaders fearful that members would reject the government-endorsed vaccines. Native Americans now have the highest vaccination rates of …

Navajo Nation outpaces wider US: 60 percent fully vaccinated
3 years, 7 months ago

Navajo Nation outpaces wider US: 60 percent fully vaccinated

Al Jazeera  

Navajo Nation leads the US in vaccination rates, despite rural population, by meeting people ‘where they are’. The Navajo Nation continues to lead the United States in vaccination efforts, having fully vaccinated 102,372 individuals as of May 15 – 60 percent of the tribal lands’ population of roughly 170,000 – according to data released on Thursday. TODAY AT MONUMENT VALLEY …

Coronavirus | For tribes in Tamil Nadu's Anamalai, it’s still an urban blight
3 years, 8 months ago

Coronavirus | For tribes in Tamil Nadu's Anamalai, it’s still an urban blight

The Hindu  

Residents of two tribal settlements within the limits of the Anamalai Tiger Reserve, around 100 km off Coimbatore city, were gearing up for the annual festival of their local deity, Vairapattan, on Thursday. The Health Department should take efforts to have a dialogue with them to create awareness about the pandemic,” said S. Thanraj from the Ekta Parishad, Tamil Nadu, …

How Navajo health workers stepped up efforts to assist vulnerable citizens during COVID-19
3 years, 9 months ago

How Navajo health workers stepped up efforts to assist vulnerable citizens during COVID-19

Firstpost  

Teesto: For as long as Raymond Clark has lived alone on this quiet stretch of the Navajo Nation under the watch of the “Praying Mountain”, he has depended on everyone yet no one. “Our grandmas and grandpas teach us, you have to give back to your people,” said Sophia Francis, secretary for the Teesto Chapter, one of 110 tribal precincts …

Navajo Nation outpaces much of US in delivering COVID vaccines
3 years, 11 months ago

Navajo Nation outpaces much of US in delivering COVID vaccines

Al Jazeera  

Indigenous Navajo Nation has used 94 percent of allocated vaccines and is to receive another 29,000. Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez said that as of Sunday, the Navajo Area Indian Health Service delivered 74,048 of the 78,520 vaccine doses it had received, a 94 percent rate. Dr Loretta Christensen, chief medical officer of the NAIHS, told Al Jazeera the Navajo …

Covid-19 deaths are at unprecedented levels in the country
4 years ago

Covid-19 deaths are at unprecedented levels in the country

CNN  

CNN — The weekly tallies of Covid-19 cases and deaths in the United States have never been higher,and state officials are warning of more alarming patterns following the holiday season. Biden team announces plan to ratchet up vaccine rollout At this point, the country’s only choice is to “vaccinate our way through this,” said Dr. Peter Hotez, dean of tropical …

COVID-19 is crushing Native American reservations. But distrust of the government makes vaccines a hard sell
4 years ago

COVID-19 is crushing Native American reservations. But distrust of the government makes vaccines a hard sell

LA Times  

Milton “Quiltman” Sahme has watched in distress as the coronavirus rips through the Warm Springs Reservation, home to about 3,800 people in central Oregon. “They’re constantly telling you one thing and doing another.” Native American leaders say such skepticism about the newly authorized coronavirus vaccines pervades their communities even as the death toll mounts. “There is going to be pushback …

Navajo Nation COVID vaccine roll-out begins as cases, deaths rise
4 years ago

Navajo Nation COVID vaccine roll-out begins as cases, deaths rise

Al Jazeera  

US’s Navajo Nation hopes to receive second vaccine batch next week as health workers fight second wave of the pandemic. The Navajo Nation reported 160 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, as public health authorities continued the first round of vaccinations among the hard-hit Indigenous population in the southwestern United States. The first COVID wave occurred when the rest of …

They know the sick. On Navajo Nation, contact tracers work to control coronavirus on vast lands
4 years, 1 month ago

They know the sick. On Navajo Nation, contact tracers work to control coronavirus on vast lands

LA Times  

The man on the other end of the speakerphone gasped and let out a thick, phlegm-clogged cough before responding to Marlene Montoya’s question. “Me and my oldest boy are in bad shape.” Montoya, a COVID-19 contact tracer here on the Navajo Nation in northwestern New Mexico, leaned close to the phone and spoke in a low, soothing tone to the …

'Breaking Point': Navajo Hospitals Warn Of Bed, Nurse And Oxygen Supply Shortages
4 years, 1 month ago

'Breaking Point': Navajo Hospitals Warn Of Bed, Nurse And Oxygen Supply Shortages

Huff Post  

LOADING ERROR LOADING Navajo Nation leaders and medical professionals on Thursday warned the reservation is facing shortages of hospital beds, nurses and oxygen supplies as COVID-19 cases continue to surge in the area and across the country. “I am very concerned about this second rise in COVID-19 cases that we’re seeing locally,” said Dr. Jonathan Iralu, an infectious disease specialist …

Covid-19: Death toll of UK Indians crosses 1,000
4 years, 1 month ago

Covid-19: Death toll of UK Indians crosses 1,000

Hindustan Times  

The death toll from Covid-19 of patients categorised as ‘Indian’ in official figures crossed the grim milestone of 1,000 on Friday, making the community the worst-hit among non-whites and complementing studies that showed non-whites have been disproportionately hit by the virus. Health professionals of Indian heritage who passed away include Jitendra Kumar Rathod, Manjeet Singh Riyat, Krishan Arora, Rajesh Kalraiya, …

The Navajo Nation is struggling to survive the coronavirus
4 years, 1 month ago

The Navajo Nation is struggling to survive the coronavirus

CNN  

Navajo Nation, Pinon, Arizona CNN — A thick cloud of dust kicks up behind cars as they meander down a rugged dirt road into town. Lack of government support Piñon High School Principal Timothy Nelson believes there are a number of reasons for the Navajo Nation’s high rate of infection, including a lack of federal and state government support. “Where’s …

Native Americans Are Afraid, Hard-Hit As Coronavirus Spikes In The Great Plains
4 years, 1 month ago

Native Americans Are Afraid, Hard-Hit As Coronavirus Spikes In The Great Plains

Huff Post  

LOADING ERROR LOADING The coronavirus is devastating Native American communities as infections are on the rise nationwide. Scott Davis — a member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and executive director of North Dakota’s Indian Affairs Commission, a state agency — called the coronavirus “very stressful” for tribes and “one of the biggest concerns” they’ve had to face in his …

Montana emergency physicians warn Covid-19 has their community on ‘the brink of disaster’
4 years, 1 month ago

Montana emergency physicians warn Covid-19 has their community on ‘the brink of disaster’

CNN  

CNN — A group of emergency physicians in Montana is pleading with their community to follow Covid-19 restrictions, warning that a surge in cases and dwindling hospital capacity in Ravalli County has the community “on the brink of disaster.” “This is a real threat, and it is getting worse daily – there is no exaggeration in saying that,” said a …

Utah reports 15 more COVID-19 deaths as surge persists
4 years, 3 months ago

Utah reports 15 more COVID-19 deaths as surge persists

Associated Press  

SALT LAKE CITY — Utah reported 15 more coronavirus deaths following medical examiner investigations on Friday as the pandemic spikes in the state. “None of the individuals who we determine to have died from COVID-19 would have suffered this fate at the time they did had they not been infected with COVID-19.” Utah has been in the midst of a …

Indigenous Americans hit harder by COVID-19: CDC report
4 years, 4 months ago

Indigenous Americans hit harder by COVID-19: CDC report

Al Jazeera  

Native Americans and Alaska Natives have been hit harder by COVID-19 than the US white population and have been more likely to become infected by the novel coronavirus at a younger age, a US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report showed on Wednesday. The incidence of laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 cases among people identified as Native Americans or Alaska Natives was …

COVID-19 just the latest epidemic in areas struck by disease
4 years, 6 months ago

COVID-19 just the latest epidemic in areas struck by disease

Associated Press  

SULEIMAN KHEL, Pakistan — When Tariq Nawaz’s daughter was born a year ago, he borrowed money to pay for his wife’s cesarean delivery. “The collapse of the health systems are imminent if these two illnesses continue rising,” said Dr. Carlos Umaña, president of the Social Security Doctors’ Association for northwest Honduras. Nawaz’s daughter, Tuba, was vaccinated against polio at four …

Covid-19 just the latest epidemic in areas struck by disease
4 years, 6 months ago

Covid-19 just the latest epidemic in areas struck by disease

India Today  

When Tariq Nawaz's daughter was born a year ago, he borrowed money to pay for his wife's cesarean delivery. "We think that the risk remains high and that cholera and acute watery diarrhea cases could easily make a strong, strong comeback," said Bismarck Swangin, a UNICEF spokesman in Yemen. Nawaz's daughter, Tuba, was vaccinated against polio at four months, but …

Navajo Nation extends closings of tribal casinos into July
4 years, 7 months ago

Navajo Nation extends closings of tribal casinos into July

Associated Press  

WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. — The Navajo Nation’s gambling operation had hoped to reopen its casinos in mid-June but they’ll stay closed until at least early July because of the coronavirus outbreak. Navajo Nation Gaming Enterprise officials said Friday that closures ordered to help curb spread of the virus will stay in place due to a recent order by tribal President …

Why has Navajo Nation been hit so hard by the coronavirus?
4 years, 7 months ago

Why has Navajo Nation been hit so hard by the coronavirus?

Al Jazeera  

Navajo Nation has the highest per capita infection rate in US, highlighting centuries of neglect, native leaders say. Navajo Nation leaders announced last week that it had the highest per capita COVID-19 infection rate in the United States, outpacing hot spots like New York. Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez said in a Monday press release that “14.6 percent of our …

Navajo Nation surpasses New York state for highest Covid-19 infection rate in the US
4 years, 7 months ago

Navajo Nation surpasses New York state for highest Covid-19 infection rate in the US

CNN  

CNN — The Navajo Nation has surpassed New York and New Jersey for the highest per-capita coronavirus infection rate in the US – another sign of Covid-19’s disproportionate impact on minority communities. By contrast, New York state now has a rate of 1,806 cases per 100,000 and New Jersey is at 1,668 cases per 100,000, according to data from Johns …

Death toll in US passes 90,000 but influential coronavirus model lowers its prediction
4 years, 7 months ago

Death toll in US passes 90,000 but influential coronavirus model lowers its prediction

CNN  

CNN — A key coronavirus model has revised its death projection for the United States slightly downward, now forecasting that 143,360 people will die by August 4. “We were pretty surprised,” said Chris Murray, the chairman of the school’s Health Metrics Sciences department. “We are going to have to conduct formal efficacy trials where you vaccinate many, many people, and …

Trump administration to hold 'virtual meetings' on oil drilling - but tribes affected have limited internet
4 years, 7 months ago

Trump administration to hold 'virtual meetings' on oil drilling - but tribes affected have limited internet

The Independent  

Sign up to the Independent Climate email for the latest advice on saving the planet Get our free Climate email Get our free Climate email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy The Trump administration is pushing ahead with plans for oil and gas drilling in New …

‘The grief is so unbearable': Virus takes hold on Navajo
4 years, 7 months ago

‘The grief is so unbearable': Virus takes hold on Navajo

Associated Press  

TUBA CITY, Arizona — The virus arrived on the reservation in early March, carried in from Tucson, doctors say, by a man who had been to a basketball tournament and then made the long drive back to a small town in the Navajo highlands. From that church in Chilchinbeto, COVID-19 took hold on the Navajo Nation, hopscotching across families and …

10 steps to save Native Americans from Covid-19 catastrophe (opinion)
4 years, 8 months ago

10 steps to save Native Americans from Covid-19 catastrophe (opinion)

CNN  

Editor’s Note: CNN host Van Jones is the CEO of the REFORM Alliance, a criminal justice organization. CNN — The pandemic ravaging some Native American communities has echoes that go back centuries – to the measles and smallpox epidemics that first decimated the original Americans. The Indian Health Service reported almost 4,000 confirmed Covid-19 cases, across all 12 regions used …

Native Americans look to future amid grim coronavirus numbers
4 years, 8 months ago

Native Americans look to future amid grim coronavirus numbers

Al Jazeera  

A programme in the Utah Navajo Nation hopes to provide sustainable aid to elders as tribes worry virus could spread. As the Navajo Nation began preparing for the coronavirus pandemic in March, Pete Sands, coordinator of a food delivery programme in the Utah portion of Navajo tribal lands, envisioned the difficulties that were to come. “A lot of the times, …

Navajo Nation Sees High Rate Of COVID-19 And Contact Tracing Is A Challenge
4 years, 8 months ago

Navajo Nation Sees High Rate Of COVID-19 And Contact Tracing Is A Challenge

NPR  

Navajo Nation Sees High Rate Of COVID-19 And Contact Tracing Is A Challenge Enlarge this image toggle caption Aurelia Yazzie/Courtesy Tuba City Regional Health Care Corporation Aurelia Yazzie/Courtesy Tuba City Regional Health Care Corporation After New York and New Jersey, the place with the highest coronavirus infection rate in the U.S. is the Navajo Nation. "We are United States citizens …

Navajo Families Without Internet Struggle To Home-School During COVID-19 Pandemic
4 years, 8 months ago

Navajo Families Without Internet Struggle To Home-School During COVID-19 Pandemic

NPR  

Navajo Families Without Internet Struggle To Home-School During COVID-19 Pandemic Enlarge this image toggle caption Kate Groetzinger/KUER Kate Groetzinger/KUER Monument Valley, Utah, is the desert backdrop for many famous old Western movies. "There's a lot of kids that don't have even electricity at home," said Spencer Singer, principal at Monument Valley High School. Sponsor Message Health Indian Health Service Doctor …

Amid coronavirus, tribes say they aren’t getting help they need from federal government
4 years, 8 months ago

Amid coronavirus, tribes say they aren’t getting help they need from federal government

CNN  

CNN — The health care crisis on reservations around the country is mounting with Navajo Nation, a vast 27,000 square miles spanning three states, facing more than 1,000 cases of coronavirus and more than 40 deaths. Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez said that while some funding was allocated for tribal communities in the CARES stimulus package, the same bureaucratic requirements …

As Coronavirus Cases Rise, Navajo Nation Tries To Get Ahead Of Pandemic
4 years, 9 months ago

As Coronavirus Cases Rise, Navajo Nation Tries To Get Ahead Of Pandemic

NPR  

As Coronavirus Cases Rise, Navajo Nation Tries To Get Ahead Of Pandemic toggle caption Courtesy of Adrian Lerma A good part of Percy Deal's day is spent hauling water for his family and livestock in two 55-gallon barrels. Adrian Lerma says these mines created conditions like autoimmune disorders that have left this community vulnerable to the coronavirus. "There are people …

Coronavirus spike on Navajo Nation raises alarms
4 years, 9 months ago

Coronavirus spike on Navajo Nation raises alarms

Al Jazeera  

A steep rise in coronavirus cases on the Navajo Nation in the western part of the United States has caused concern among regional leaders, who worry the tribal lands are ill-equipped to handle the pandemic and the federal government is taking too long to address needs. The Navajo Nation Department of Health and Navajo Area Indian Health Service reported 174 …

Navajo Nation President: U.S. Government Ignoring Native Americans Amid Coronavirus
4 years, 9 months ago

Navajo Nation President: U.S. Government Ignoring Native Americans Amid Coronavirus

Huff Post  

LOADING ERROR LOADING Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez said Tuesday that the U.S. government “once again has ignored” the country’s Indigenous people, accusing federal officials of failing to deliver enough much-needed resources to help fight the coronavirus. “We feel that the United States government once again has ignored or even left out the first residents, the first people, the first …

No running water. No electricity. On Navajo Nation, coronavirus creates worry and confusion as cases surge
4 years, 9 months ago

No running water. No electricity. On Navajo Nation, coronavirus creates worry and confusion as cases surge

LA Times  

Lisa Robbins runs the generator attached to her family’s mobile home for just a few hours most mornings. “They told us to stay inside … don’t come out because people could die,” Robbins said one evening last week. “Navajo residents are panicking as these numbers rise,” said Jonathan Nez, president of the Navajo Nation. “That’s when I really realized something …

Coronavirus: Are we ready?
4 years, 10 months ago

Coronavirus: Are we ready?

India Today  

Vinaya Chandran knew exactly what he wanted to do even before he was released from the army quarantine camp in Manesar, Har­yana eat a home-cooked meal with his family in his hometown Alappuzha in Kerala. He and the 647 other Indians evacuated from Wuhan on January 30 and February 1 in two batches were released on February 19 after they …

US nursing home COVID-19 outbreak highlights close-quarter spread
4 years, 10 months ago

US nursing home COVID-19 outbreak highlights close-quarter spread

Al Jazeera  

Seattle, Washington – At the centre of the spread of the novel coronavirus in the United States is a nursing home in Washington state where several people have died after being diagnosed with COVID-19. “I don’t think that nursing homes are categorically at increased risk at this time, but if a virus gets access to a nursing home, it will …

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