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COVID-19 Mortality Among American Indian and Alaska Native Persons - 14 States, January-June 2020

Jessica Arrazola et al. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. .

Erratum in

  • Erratum: Vol. 69, No. 49.
    [No authors listed] [No authors listed] MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2021 Jan 8;70(1):24. doi: 10.15585/mmwr.mm7001a6. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2021. PMID: 33411703 Free PMC article. No abstract available.

Abstract

American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) persons experienced disproportionate mortality during the 2009 influenza A(H1N1) pandemic (1,2). Concerns of a similar trend during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic led to the formation of a workgroup* to assess the prevalence of COVID-19 deaths in the AI/AN population. As of December 2, 2020, CDC has reported 2,689 COVID-19-associated deaths among non-Hispanic AI/AN persons in the United States.† A recent analysis found that the cumulative incidence of laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 cases among AI/AN persons was 3.5 times that among White persons (3). Among 14 participating states, the age-adjusted AI/AN COVID-19 mortality rate (55.8 deaths per 100,000; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 52.5-59.3) was 1.8 (95% CI = 1.7-2.0) times that among White persons (30.3 deaths per 100,000; 95% CI = 29.9-30.7). Although COVID-19 mortality rates increased with age among both AI/AN and White persons, the disparity was largest among those aged 20-49 years. Among persons aged 20-29 years, 30-39 years, and 40-49 years, the COVID-19 mortality rates among AI/AN were 10.5, 11.6, and 8.2 times, respectively, those among White persons. Evidence that AI/AN communities might be at increased risk for COVID-19 illness and death demonstrates the importance of documenting and understanding the reasons for these disparities while developing collaborative approaches with federal, state, municipal, and tribal agencies to minimize the impact of COVID-19 on AI/AN communities. Together, public health partners can plan for medical countermeasures and prevention activities for AI/AN communities.

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Conflict of interest statement

All authors have completed and submitted the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors form for disclosure of potential conflicts of interest. No potential conflicts of interest were disclosed.

Figures

FIGURE
FIGURE
Percentage distribution of COVID-19–associated deaths among American Indian/Alaska Native and non-Hispanic White persons aged ≥20 years, by age group — 14 states, January 1–June 30, 2020 Abbreviation: COVID-19 = coronavirus disease 2019. * Includes Hispanic and non-Hispanic ethnicities. † Percentages by age group are not age-adjusted. § Alaska, Arizona, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, and Washington.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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