MONDAY, April 5, 2021 (HealthDay News) — The Navajo Nation recently reported no coronavirus cases and no COVID-19 deaths in a 24-hour period, a notable achievement considering that the second largest tribe in the United States once had one of the highest COVID-19 case rates in the country.
The tribe has more than 300,000 enrolled members and is currently averaging about 11 new cases a day, compared with a peak of 250 in late November, Navajo Department of Health data show, The New York Times reported. The tribe has vaccinated more than half of its 170,000 residents living on tribal lands, which is a higher rate than any state.
COVID-19 death rates among indigenous Americans — who have high rates of health conditions such as diabetes and obesity — have been nearly twice that of White Americans, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, The Times reported.
Vaccination efforts have also been a huge success, with about just over 218,000 shots given (nearly 90 percent of the doses allocated) and more than 88,500 people fully vaccinated.
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