Seattle Indian Health Board and our research division, Urban Indian Health Institute, are committed to understanding the impacts of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in urban American Indian and Alaska Native communities.
Tribal Epidemiology Centers should have access to Health and Human Services (HHS) data as a public health authority, yet institutional barriers in accessing public health data persist.
A failure to grant data access perpetuates systemic health inequities in Native communities as Tribal and urban Indian communities plan for both current and future surges of COVID-19 cases. Native communities must be equipped with the right information to implement data-driven decision-making.
We hope this policy resource and recommendations support our tribal, community, and government partners, as we collectively address the immediate and long-term impacts of COVID-19 in American Indian and Alaska Native communities.
