Study spotlights high COVID-19 death rate for US native populations
Data published today in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC's) Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) show nearly double the COVID-19 mortality rate among people of American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) ethnicity compared with whites.
AI/AN populations suffered disproportionate mortality during the 2009 H1N1 flu pandemic, leading to concerns about a similar trend during COVID-19. The CDC has reported 2,689 COVID-19–associated deaths among non-Hispanic AI/AN people in the United States as of Dec 2, and an earlier MMWR study found more than three times the incidence of COVID-19 among AI/AN individuals compared to whites.
Researchers with the CDC, the Indian Health Service, and 14 state health departments—representing approximately 46.5% of the US AI/AN population—collected state health department data on COVID-19 cases and associated deaths in the AI/AN population. AI/AN race was defined as AI/AN either alone or in any racial/ethnic combination, while White race was defined as non-Hispanic White only.
The 14 states reported 1,134 deaths (55% men) among AI/AN populations from Jan 1 to Jun 30. The researchers found an age-adjusted mortality rate of 55.8 deaths per 100,000 for AI/AN people (95% confidence interval [CI], 52.5 to 59.3)—1.8 times that for whites (30.3 deaths per 100,000, 95% CI, 29.9 to 30.7).
The age of AI/AN people who died from COVID-19 was younger than that of whites—35.1% of AI/AN deaths were among people younger than age 60, compared with 6.3% of deaths among White people. Mortality rates among AI/AN young adults 20 to 29, 30 to 39, and 40 to 49 years of age were 10.5, 11.6, and 8.2 times higher than in whites in those age-groups.
The authors concluded, "Long-standing inequities in public funding; infrastructure; and access to health care, education, stable housing, healthy foods, and insurance coverage have contributed to health disparities (including higher prevalences of smoking, obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease) that put indigenous peoples at higher risk for severe COVID-19–associated illness."
Dec 11 MMWR study
Most US parents agree about school reopening, with high concern levels
In a July survey of 858 parents with children in primary or secondary school, 84.9% were worried about education quality during the COVID-19 pandemic, with no significant differences across race, but non-white parents were more concerned about transmission-related issues if schools were to reopen in the fall, a separate MMWR report today finds.
CDC researchers found that 56.5% of parents at least somewhat agreed schools should open in the fall, with the most amount of agreement coming from white parents (62.3%) and the least from black parents (46.0%). Similarly, 67.6% of white parents said the experience of being in school was more important than COVID-related risks, whereas 53.9% of Hispanics, 53.4% of other races, and 56.5% of blacks felt this way.
Overall, 86.3% of parents were concerned about their child bringing home COVID-19 as a result of attending school, with 84.5% of white parents representing the least concerned subgroup and 92.7% of black parents representing the most concerned group. Parents of other racial backgrounds were the most concerned about student compliance with COVID mitigations (96.9%), followed by black parents (91.9%), white parents (85.6%), and then Hispanic parents (80.6%).
"Understanding racial/ethnic differences in parental attitudes and concerns about school reopening can inform communication and mitigation strategies and highlights the importance of considering risks for severe COVID-19 and family resource needs when developing options for school attendance during the COVID-19 pandemic," write the researchers. "The current school year is well underway; however, these findings remain relevant as the pandemic evolves and families and school districts continue to weigh the risks and benefits of in-person versus virtual instruction."
The authors caution against generalizing the results, adding that limitations include shifting opinions and the unknown variability of how parents with multiple children evaluated concerns that may have applied to one child more than another.
Dec 11 MMWR report