COVID-19 on Tribal Reservations: Challenges and Needed Policy Foci

• In Event: Relevance, Quality, and Expedience: Political Science Responds to COVID-19: Identity and Responses to COVID-19

Abstract

As domestic dependent sovereign nations, tribal governments have a unique status in the US. Even though the federal government has a trust responsibility, tribes are often forgotten during crises. COVID-19 created a global pandemic that highlighted the need to review our nation’s policies for coordinating with tribes. The situation was so dire at Navajo and Hopi that Doctors Without Borders, a non-governmental organization dedicated to providing lifesaving medical care to those most in need, deployed, for the first time, to a domestic location.
Tribal lands are frequently rural and lack basic services such as clean drinking water, proper sewage, and access to fresh foods a clear disadvantage in the fight against the spread of COVID-19 (Crepelle, 2019; Necefer, 2015). In addition, tribal citizens suffer from higher rates of diabetes, respiratory issues, obesity, and other illnesses (Burrows, et al, 2000; Nickle, 2018; Lewis, 2004; Singleton, 2006) making this population incredibly vulnerable. Yet, tribal nations, such as the Navajo Nation, which has the highest infection rate of COVID-19 in the nation (Silverman, 2020), initially were not included in the CARES Act (McSally & Daines, 2020).
Ultimately, tribal leaders and organizations working closely with federal legislators were inserted into federal legislation, but implementation problems remained. Tribes requested that the Center for Disease Control funding be funneled through the Indian Health Service (IHS) for streamlining purposes, but bureaucratic unpreparedness prevented this. Furthermore, the CARES Act incorporated timelines for start of construction that were unreasonable for tribal communities, especially due to the lack of infrastructure development, which needs to be address before any projects can be undertaken. Another administrative challenge is that many states are not disaggregating their COVID-19 data by race or tribal affiliation making planning difficult and obscuring the impact. Finally, differences between tribal responses and state responses created tensions in certain areas as both pushed to protect their jurisdictional integrity (CRST, 2020; Heinert, et al., 2020).
The COVID-19 pandemic exposed several problems that may have policy solutions. First, all federal agencies should consult with tribal nations and have processes already in place in case during an emergency. Excluding tribal nations, whether intentional or not, results in less funding appropriated to tribes, which, in turn, may result in state and local governments having to shoulder more of the burden. Third, states should consider solidifying state-tribal consultation agreements and coordinating efforts amongst themselves and with federal agencies. Fourth, infrastructure development on reservations should be a funding priority. The lack of infrastructure on reservations is an invisible, but huge public health issue. While tribal nations and state governments are distinct, their co-located status provides an opportunity to take advantage of shared interests in order to multiply their effectiveness with an inactive federal government.

Author

• Lorinda Riley, University of Hawai'i Manoa